PAULINE  FORE  MOFFITT 
LIBRARY 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA 
GENERAL  LIBRARY,  BERKELEY 


1 


JAMES    K. MOFFITT 


s 


X/«*w 

f 


The 
World  of  the  Great  Forest 


"Here  I  am,  dear,  waiting  fir  you" 


The 
World  of  the  Great  Forest 

How  Animals,  Birds,  Reptiles,  Insects 
Talk,  Think,  Work,  and  Live 

By 
Paul   Du   Chaillu 

Author  of  "The  Viking  Age,"  "The  Land  of  the  Long  Night,"    "  Ivar  the 

Viking,"    "The   Land   of  the   Midnight    Sun,"    "Explorations 

in   Equatorial    Africa,"    "Stories  of  the  Gorilla  Country," 

"Wild  Life  under  the  Equator,"  "  Lost  in  the  Jungle," 

"My  Apingi  Kingdom,"   "The  Country 

of  the  Dwarfs,"  etc.,  etc. 

WITH    OVER    FIFTT   ILLUSTRATIONS 

BY 

C.  R.  KNIGHT  AND  J.  M.  GLEESON 


New  York 

Charles  Scribner's  Sons 
1900 


Copyright,  IQOO 
BY  CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS 


UNIVERSITY    PRESS      .     JOHN    WILSON 
AND     SON     •     CAMBRIDGE,    U.S.A. 


ro 

CHARLES  SCRIBNER  AND  ARTHUR  H.  SCRIBNER 


DEAR  FRIENDS,  —  Remembering  the  uniform  courtesy 
and  consideration  it  has  been  my  good  fortune  to  experience 
at  your  hands  for  a  series  of  years,  and  recollecting  the 
delightful  relations  that  have  always  been  reciprocal  between 
us,  and  that  have  contributed  so  much  to  my  happiness,  I  take 
infinite  pleasure  in  dedicating  this  volume,  u  The  World  of 
the  Great  Forest"  to  you  both,  as  a  slight  evidence  of  the 
sincere  esteem  entertained  by  me,  an  author,  for  you,  my 

publishers. 

PAUL   DU  CHAILLU. 


Introduction 

THE  World  of  the  Great  Central  African  Forest 
is  a  remarkable  one.     Its  denizens  range  from 
the  huge  elephant  to  the  smallest  ant,  and  in  its  dark 
recesses  and  almost  impenetrable  jungle  I  have  studied 
the  life  of  these  creatures. 

From  close  observation  and  persistent  study  I  have 
arrived  at  the  conclusion  that  animals,  birds,  reptiles, 
ants,  spiders,  etc.,  possess  great  power  of  apprehen 
sion  and  prevision ;  that  creatures  of  the  same  species 
have  understanding  with  one  another,  either  by  voice, 
sign,  or  other  ways  unknown  to  man ;  otherwise  they 
could  not  act  with  such  harmony  and  deliberation. 

It  is  not  reasonable  to  say  that  animals  do  not  con 
verse  because  we  do  not  understand  or  hear  the  sounds 
they  make.  The  fault  is  ours,  not  theirs.  Do  we 
not  always  say,  when  we  are  learning  a  foreign  language 
and  begin  to  speak  with  the  natives,  that  they  talk  so 
fast  we  cannot  follow  them  ?  The  articulation  and 
the  words  seem  to  be  blended  together,  and  it  is  only 
after  a  time  that  we  catch  separate  words. 

vii 


INTRODUCTION 

Everything  that  lives  is  born  with  wonderful  gifts 
suited  to  its  mode  of  life.  The  shape  and  appearance 
of  animals  are  designed  to  enable  them  to  lead  their 
special  lives.  Many  have  great  power  of  scent,  much 
keener  than  that  of  man.  This  particular  attribute 
enables  them  to  approach  their  prey  and  avoid  danger. 
For  example,  the  animal  that  preys  upon  others  knows 
enough  to  move  against  the  wind  on  his  predatory  ex 
peditions.  Those  that  feed  on  fruits  and  nuts  know 
exactly  at  what  season,  in  what  month  or  week  of  the 
year,  these  are  good  to  eat,  and  where  they  are  to  be 
found.  They  know  how  far  distant  is  their  feeding- 
ground,  and  the  time  needed  to  reach  it.  They  all 
know  their  way,  whether  through  the  air  or  in  the 
jungle,  and  nothing  escapes  their  observation. 

When  animals  or  birds  are  taught  to  speak,  or  to  do 
special  tricks,  it  is  clear  that  they  must  exercise  mem 
ory,  and  memory  means  thought,  and  thought  means 
reason. 

The  destruction  of  life,  the  battles  that  take  place 
among  the  creatures  of  that  great  African  Forest,  the 
millions  that  are  killed  and  eaten  up  every  day,  are  be 
yond  computation.  Life,  to  sustain  itself,  must  destroy 
life;  such  is  the  economy  of  nature.  It  is  a  struggle 
for  existence  among  all.  So  the  great  gift  given  to 
every  creature  is  knowledge  of  how  to  protect  itself 
from  its  enemies,  and  how  to  approach  its  prey.  If  it 
were  not  for  constant  destruction,  the  animal  world 


vui 


INTRODUCTION 

would  increase  so  fast  that  there  would  be  room  and 
food  left  for  none. 

To  enable  the  reader  to  enter  into  the  life  of  the 
great  African  Forest,  I  have  made  the  animals  tell  their 
own  stories  and  explain  their  own  actions  as  if  they 
were  endowed  with  the  power  of  speech.  And  I  have 
given  to  them  native  names.  A  number  of  the  ani 
mals  mentioned,  I  discovered  myself. 

PAUL  DU  CHAILLU. 
AUGUST   15,    1900. 


IX 


Contents 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.     THE  GUANIONIEN,   OR  GIANT  EAGLE i 

II.     THE  GUANIONIENS'  DEPARTURE    FOR   THE    LAND  OF 

PLENTY     9 

III.  THE  NGOZOS,  OR  GRAY  PARROTS  WITH  RED  TAILS     .  16 

IV.  THE  NKEMAS,   OR   MONKEYS,   TRAVEL    TOWARD    THE 

LAND  OF  PLENTY 30 

V.  ARRIVAL  OF  THE  NGOZOS  AND  NKEMAS  IN  THE  LAND 

OF  PLENTY 43 

VI.  THE  NIGHT  ANIMALS 49 

VII.     THE  NJEGO,  OR  LEOPARD 51 

VIII.     BIRTH  OF  THREE  LITTLE  NJEGOS 60 

IX.     THE  BIG  NJEGO  BECOMES  A  MAN-EATER       ....  65 

X.     THE  HAKOS,  OR  ANTS 73 

XI.       THE  NcHELLELAYS,  OR  WHITE  ANTS 75 

XII.    THE  GIANT  NCHELLELAYS 86 

XIII.  THE  NGOMBAS,  OR  PORCUPINES 91 

XIV.  THE  IPI,  OR  GIANT  ANT-EATER 97 

XV.     THE    NGOMBA,    OR    PORCUPINE  —  THE    IZOMBA,   OR 

TURTLE  —  THE  IPI,  OR  ANT-EATER 101 

XVI.     THE  NGOOBOO,  OR  HIPPOPOTAMUS 1 06 

XVII.     A  FIGHT  FOR  Miss  NGOOBOO 116 

xi 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XVIII.     THE  FIVE  APES,  OR  MEN  OF  THE  WOODS    .     .     .  1 20 
XIX.     THE    NGINAS,  OR    GORILLAS,    AND    NJOKOOS,  OR 

ELEPHANTS 1 24 

XX.     THE  NGINAS  TRAVEL  TO  A  PLANTAIN  FIELD  ;  THEIR 

STRANGE  ADVENTURES 134 

XXI.     THE   NJOKOOS,   OR   ELEPHANTS,    TRAVEL    TO   THE 

PLANTAIN  FIELD 139 

XXII.     ARRIVAL  OF   THE  HUMAN  BEINGS  WHO   OWN  THE 

PLANTAIN  FIELD 143 

XXIII.  THE  THREE  NGINAS  KILLED  BY  HUNTERS     .     .     .  145 

XXIV.  THE  OMEMBAS,  OR  SNAKES 1 56 

XXV.     A  HUGE  OMBAMA,   OR  PYTHON  .     .     .     .     .     .  158 

XXVI.     THE  NTOTO,  OR  ICHNEUMON 165 

XXVII.     THE  IBOBOTI,  OR  SPIDER 170 

XXVIII.     THE  TRAP-DOOR  IBOBOTI,  OR  BURROW  SPIDER      .  176 

XXIX.     THE  HOUSE  IBOBOTI,  OR  NIGHT  SPIDER      .     .     .  184 

XXX.     THE  NYOI,  OR  WASP,  AND  THE  IBOBOTI      .      .     .  188 

XXXI.     THE  Two  NKENGOS,  OR  PALE-FACED  APES  .     .     .191 

XXXII.     A  BABY  NKENGO  is  BORN  TO  THE  OLD  NKENGOS     .  204 

XXXIII.  THE  NGANDOS,  OR  CROCODILES 210 

XXXIV.  THE  OGATA,  OR  BURROW  CROCODILE     .     .     .     .  216 

XXXV.     THE    KAMBIS,   OR  ANTELOPES,  THE  NCHERIS,  OR 

GAZELLES,  AND  THE  BONGO 220 

XXXVI.     THE  OSHINGI,  OR  CIVET 224 

XXXVII,     THE  INSECTS,  APILIBISHES,   OR   BUTTERFLIES,  AND 

OSELIS,  OR  LIZARDS  .........  235 

xii 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XXXVIII.  THE  NJOKOOS,  OR  ELEPHANTS 238 

XXXIX.  ADVENTURES  OF  THE  NEW  NJOKOOS 244 

XL.  EVIL  DAYS  FOR  THE  NJOKOOS 251 

XLI.  NjOKOOS  AND  THEIR  BABIES 256 

XLII.  THE  MBOYOS,  OR  JACKALS 263 

XLIII.  THE  NSHIEYS,  OR  FISH,  AND  THEIR  ENEMIES     .      .  268 

XLIV.  THE  KONGOO,  ONE  OF  THE  FISHING  EAGLES      .      .  272 

XLV.  THE  BASHIKOUAY  ANTS 284 

XLVI.  THE  DARKENING  OF  THE  DAY 291 

XLVII.  THE  NTUNGOOLOOYA,  OR  KINGFISHER   ....  293 

XLVIII.  THE  OBONGOS,   OR  DWARFS 297 

XLIX.  ADVENTURES  OF  A  NKENGO  AND  A  NSHIEGO      .     .  309 


GLOSSARY  OF  NATIVE  ANIMAL- NAMES 323 


Xlll 


List  of  Full-Page  Illustrations 


"  Here  I  am,  dear,  waiting  for  you  " Frontispiece 

FACING  PAGE 

"  Here  is  a  huge  manga  " 39 

"  He  watched  her  " 66 

"How  they  enjoyed  their  sea  bath" 115 

"  Then  ensued  a  terrible  fight  " 117 

"  He  gave  him  a  terrible  bite  " 136 

"He  attacked  him,  imbedding  his  teeth  firmly  in  the  back  of 

his  neck" 166 

"All  the  others  fled  in  terror  and  disappeared  in  the  Great 

Forest" 214 

"  A  pack  of  ugly-looking  striped  hyenas  " 266 

"  The  kongoo,  using  all  his  strength  with  his  wings,  gave 

several  flaps" •  280 

"  The  poor  njokoo  fled  for  his  life  " 288 


xv 


The 
World  of  the  Great  Forest 

CHAPTER    I 

THE    GUANIONIEN,    OR    GIANT    EAGLE 

A  GUANIONIEN,  as  he  soared  between  the 
great  forest  and  the  sun,  said  to  himself:  "  I 
am  the  lord  of  the  air ;  I  am  the  largest  and  most 
powerful  of  all  the  eagles  of  the  land.  I  am  called 
the  leopard  of  the  air.  I  feed  on  monkeys." 

Then  he  chuckled,  the  way  the  guanioniens  do, 
and  rose  higher  and  higher  in  the  sky  at  each  circle 
that  he  made.  It  seemed  as  if  he  were  going  directly 
toward  the  sun.  At  last  he  flew  so  high  that  no 
eyes  from  the  forest  could  see  him. 

After  a  while  he  reappeared;  he  was  coming  down 
again  in  a  series  of  circles  to  the  forest.  At  times 
his  huge  wings  spread  their  full  length  and  then 
stood  still.  He  seemed  to  hang  motionless  in  the 
air.  When  he  had  come  down  near  enough,  he 
scanned  the  great  sea  of  trees  all  over,  to  see  if  their 
branches  were  moving,  for  this  would  show  that  there 
were  monkeys  upon  them  feeding  upon  their  fruit, 
nuts,  or  berries.  But  all  was  still ;  not  a  branch 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

stirred,  and  there  was  no  wind.  His  eyes  looked 
down  perpendicularly  and  could  see  any  object  right 
under  him.  There  was  no  monkey  in  sight. 

He  said  to  himself:  "  Why  have  the  monkeys  been 
so  shy  of  late,  and  kept  themselves  in  the  middle  of 
the  trees,  never  coming  to  their  tops  ?  Surely  other 
guanioniens  must  have  been  here  before  me  and 
scared  all  the  monkeys :  they  are  afraid  and  keep 
out  of  sight ;  they  know  that  we  cannot  pounce  upon 
them.  How  cunning  they  are  !  " 

He  saw  a  giant  tree  about  four  hundred  feet  high, 
rising  twice  as  high  as  the  other  trees  of  the  forest, 
and  meditated :  "  The  creatures  of  the  forest  know 
the  favorite  trees  upon  which  I  perch  and  eat  my 
prey,  only  by  the  skulls  and  bones  of  the  monkeys 
I  have  torn  to  pieces  and  devoured  lying  at  their 
feet  on  the  ground.  —  But,"  he  added,  "  it  is  not 
every  day  that  I  get  a  meal." 

He  laughed :  "  No  harm  can  ever  befall  me,  for 
no  enemy  can  frighten  me ;  no  bird  is  strong  enough 
to  fight  against  me  ;  the  spears  and  arrows  of  human 
beings  can  never  reach  me  and  hurt  me,  for  I  fly 
and  perch  so  high ;  men  cannot  even  see  the  tops 
of  my  trees  on  account  of  the  thick  foliage  which 
shuts  off  from  them  even  the  sun  and  the  sky." 

After  he  had  rested,  he  flew  away  and  soared  over 
the  dark  green  forest,  which  was  so  large  that  it 
seemed  to  have  no  beginning  nor  end,  and  once 
more  he  watched  for  monkeys.  But  his  piercing, 
far-sighted  eyes  saw  nothing,  —  not  a  branch  of  a  tree 


THE    GUANIONIEN 

was  moving.  Then  he  thought  it  was  time  to  seek 
his  mate,  for  they  had  agreed  when  they  parted  in 
the  morning  to  meet  on  a  certain  tree  upon  which 
they  were  accustomed  to  rest  during  the  day  after 
their  noon  search  for  prey,  and  tell  each  other 
what  had  happened. 

Before  long  he  saw  the  tree  he  sought.  It  was 
easily  recognizable  by  the  peculiar  shape  of  its 
branches.  Soon  he  was  soaring  over  it,  uttering  pe 
culiar  sounds  belonging  to  the  language  of  the 
guanioniens,  and  meaning,  "  Are  you  there,  dear  ? 
I  am  coming;  "  and  his  mate,  already  at  the  ren 
dezvous,  replied,  "  Here  I  am,  dear,  waiting  for 
you." 

Soon  after,  the  big  guanionien  had  alighted  upon 
a  branch  close  to  hers,  and  the  two  looked  at  each 
other  with  affection,  for  they  had  not  seen  each 
other  since  they  had  parted  a  little  after  daylight. 

They  uttered  sounds  which  seemed  strange,  for 
these  were  words  belonging  to  the  guanionien  lan 
guage,  which  meant,  "  How  glad,  dear,  I  am  to  see 
you  !  How  are  you  ?  "  or,  "  How  have  you  been 
since  this  morning  ?  " 

After  their  greeting  there  was  a  short  silence,  then 
the  big  guanionien  said  to  his  mate,  "  Dear,  what 
is  the  news  ?  Have  you  been  lucky  to-day  ?  Have 
you  had  a  meal  ?  " 

"  No,"  she  replied.  "  Not  a  monkey  came  in 
sight  to-day.  They  were  afraid  to  come  to  the  tops 
of  the  trees  to  feed,  though  I  heard  many  of  them 

3 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

talking  among  themselves  several  times.  I  am  starv 
ing.  Surely  guanioniens  have  been  in  the  region 
before  us,  and  that  is  the  reason  why  the  monkeys 
keep  away." 

In  her  turn  she  inquired,  "  Have  you  good  news 
to  tell  me  ?  Have  you  discovered  a  place  where 
monkeys  are  plentiful  ?  Have  you  had  a  good 
meal  ?  " 

"  Only  bad  news  have  I  to  tell,"  he  replied.  "  I 
have  seen  no  troops  of  monkeys.  Bad  luck  con 
tinues  to  follow  us.  I  am  starving,  too.  For  three 
days  we  have  soared  over  this  great  forest  and  have 
seen  and  caught  nothing."  And  with  a  sigh,  "  How 
hard  we  have  to  work  for  our  living !  "  said  both  at 
the  same  time.  "  Oh,  how  fortunate  it  is  that  we 
guanioniens  are  so  constituted  that  we  can  starve  for 
days  without  dying  !  This  great  gift  has  been  given 
to  us  to  suit  our  mode  of  life.  Hunger  is  our 
enemy;  but  old  age  is  our  greatest  one." 

They  left  their  tree  and  agreed  to  come  back  in 
the  evening  to  sleep  upon  it,  as  had  been  their  cus 
tom  for  some  little  time.  They  flew  a  long  way  off, 
in  a  bee-line  at  first,  keeping  in  sight  of  each  other 
for  a  while,  then  parted. 

Toward  sunset  they  were  once  more  perched  on 
the  tree,  and  each  inquired  for  the  afternoon's  news. 

The  big  guanionien  said:  "  Several  times  I  saw 
branches  moving,  with  monkeys  upon  them.  At  this 
sight  my  appetite  grew  more  voracious  than  before, 
and  I  thought  that  I  was  going  to  have  a  good  meal. 

4 


THE    GUANIONIEN 

I  soared  over  the  trees,  but  the  monkeys  never  came 
to  the  tops  so  that  I  could  swoop  down  upon  them. 
They  seemed  to  dread  danger,  although  I  was  so 
high  in  the  air  that  they  could  not  see  me.  But 
experience  has  taught  them  that  it  is  not  safe  for 
them  to  be  on  the  tops  of  the  trees  ;  ugly,  suspi 
cious  monkeys,  we  have  to  be  very  cunning  to  cap 
ture  them/' 

After  he  had  finished,  he  asked  his  mate  what  she 
had  to  tell.  She  replied  :  "  During  my  flight  I  came 
to  a  place  where  I  saw  the  tops  of  several  trees 
covered  with  big  red  fruit.  Surely,  I  thought,  mon 
keys  will  be  tempted  when  they  see  this,  and  will 
come  out  to  eat.  I  soared  over  them  until  it  was 
time  to  leave  to  meet  you,  for  sunset  was  fast  coming 
on.  At  the  dawn  of  the  day  we  must  fly  to  that 
place,  for  I  believe  that  some  wandering  troops  of 
monkeys  will  surely  come  there  to  feed." 

"  If  I  capture  a  monkey,  he  will  never  drop  from 
my  claws,'*  said  her  mate. 

"  Neither  will  one  from  mine,"  she  replied.  "Oh, 
dear,  how  hard  it  is  to  work  for  nothing ! " 

The  sun  had  set,  and  darkness  came  over  the  land, 
and  the  two  guanioniens  fell  asleep.  They  felt  safe, 
for  the  tree  was  large,  and  its  first  branch  was  so  high 
above  the  forest  that  nothing  but  winged  creatures 
could  get  to  them. 

At  daybreak  the  two  guanioniens  left,  travelling  in 
the  direction  of  the  fruit  trees  as  fast  as  they  could. 
They  remained  in  sight  of  each  other,  but  did  not 

5 


THE   WORLD  OF  THE  GREAT   FOREST 

talk  or  hail  each  other,  as  was  their  wont,  for  fear 
the  monkeys  might  hear  them  and  become  more  wary 
than  ever. 

At  last,  to  their  great  satisfaction,  after  travelling 
about  one  hundred  miles,  they  saw  in  the  distance  the 
bright  red  tops  of  the  fruit  trees  they  sought.  At  the 
sight  the  two  guanioniens  came  together  and  whispered  : 
"  Surely  some  troops  of  monkeys  will  come  and  feed 
upon  these  trees.  Let  us  soar  above  them  all  day,  if 
necessary.  Patience  is  often  rewarded.  Sometimes 
the  prey  comes  when  we  are  ready  to  give  up." 

Then  they  flew  very  high  and  soared  above  the 
fruit-bearing  trees.  They  soared  a  long  time,  looking 
down  in  that  peculiar  manner  which  belongs  to  the 
eagle,  their  eyeballs  moving  so  that  they  can  see 
directly  under  them.  Suddenly  they  heard  monkeys 
chattering  among  themselves.  The  reason  of  this 
loud  talk  was  that  two  troops  of  different  species 
of  monkeys  were  quarrelling,  daring  each  other  and 
ready  to  fight.  One  troop  was  trying  to  drive  the 
other  away. 

The  two  guanioniens,  by  peculiar  motions  of  their 
wings  and  other  silent  ways  of  communication  only 
known  to  their  species,  told  each  other  the  news  about 
the  monkeys. 

Great  indeed  was  the  joy  of  the  guanioniens  at  the 
prospect  of  a  good  hearty  meal.  They  bided  their 
time  and  watched  for  their  opportunity.  They  were 
not  going  to  be  rash  and  run  tne  chance  of  missing 
their  prey. 

6 


THE    GUANIONIEN 


It  happened  that  two  or  three  days  before,  troops  of 
monkeys  had  come  to 
those  same  trees  and 
had  eaten  up  all  the 
fruit  that  was  on  their 
lower  and  middle 
branches,  thus  leaving 
that  on  the  top.  The 


monkeys  looked 
and  when 
they  saw  the 
bright  red,  juicy 
fruit,  they  forgot 
all  about  guan- 
ioniens,  and  soon 
were  all  over  the 
tops  of  several 
trees  eating  away 
to  their  hearts'  content,  unaware  of  the  presence 

•  7 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT   FOREST 

of  their  enemies  soaring  above  them  and  waiting  for 
the  opportune  moment  to  pounce  upon  them. 

Suddenly,  like  a  flash,  the  two  guanioniens  swooped 
down  perpendicularly  from  their  height,  and  before 
the  monkeys  were  aware  of  their  presence,  they  had 
seized  the  two  largest  in  their  talons,  clutched  firmly 
by  the  neck  and  back,  and  rose  in  the  air  with  them. 


CHAPTER    II 

THE    GUANIONIENS'     DEPARTURE    FOR    THE    LAND 
OF    PLENTY 

ONE  evening  after  the  guanioniens  had  returned 
to  their  tree  to  spend  the  night,  and  as  they 
stood  close  together  on  a  branch  upon  which  they  had 
perched,  the  big  guanionien  said  to  his  mate :  "  Dear, 
it  is  time  to  prepare  ourselves  for  the  long  journey  we 
take  every  year  at  this  season,  to  go  to  our  nest  and 
repair  it.  The  country  where  we  have  built  our  nest 
will  soon  be  a  land  of  plenty ;  there  will  be  berries, 
nuts,  and  fruits  in  abundance.  By  that  time  little 
guanioniens  will  break  out  of  their  shells  into  the 
world.  The  monkeys  will  come  in  great  numbers  to 
feed  on  the  ripened  fruits  or  nuts,  and,"  with  a  laugh 
peculiar  to  guanioniens,  "  then  we  shall  be  able  to 
feed  ourselves  and  our  dear  little  ones  quite  well." 

"  It  is  so,"  replied  his  mate.  "  The  height  of  the 
sun,  the  intense  heat,  dry  moons  and  rainy  moons 
that  have  passed  away  since  we  were  in  the  Land  of 
Plenty  tell  us  that  it  is  time  for  us  to  go  to  our  nest, 
repair  it,  and  raise  a  brood  of  guanioniens." 

Then  came  a  long  silence  ;  the  guanioniens  were 
fast  asleep. 

The  following  morning  they  greeted  each  other, 
then  started  for  the  Land  of  Plenty  to  visit  their  nest, 

9 


THE   WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT   FOREST 

which  they  had  done  every  year  for  a  long  time  past. 
They  flew  in  a  bee-line.  They  knew  their  way  per 
fectly  well  through  the  air ;  but  how,  no  one  in  the 
forest  could  tell  but  guanioniens  themselves.  They 
had  to  travel  over  a  thousand  miles  before  reach 
ing  their  nest.  Now  and  then  they  looked  down 
upon  the  forest  to  see  if  any  branches  were  mov 
ing  at  the  tops  of  the  trees.  This  would  be  a  sign 
that  monkeys  were  there.  When  they  suspected 
that  it  was  so,  they  would  soar  above  them,  peeping 
deeply  into  the  branches,  but  that  day  they  were 
unsuccessful. 

Toward  sunset  they  saw  two  giant  trees  growing 
close  together,  well  known  to  them,  and  upon  these 
they  perched  for  the  night.  After  they  alighted  they 
looked  all  around.  They  saw  some  nut-bearing  trees, 
and  the  big  guanionien  said  to  his  mate,  "  Let  us  soar 
over  these  trees  to-morrow  morning ;  perhaps  we  shall 
discover  monkeys  feeding  on  their  tops.  We  shall 
have  to  be  patient,  for  as  you  know,  dear,  prey 
sometimes  shows  itself  at  the  last  hour  and  when 
least  expected.  We  cannot  well  undertake  this  long 
journey  without  food." 

Then  they  went  to  sleep.  Early  the  next  morning 
they  saw  from  their  resting-place  branches  of  trees 
moving  in  several  places,  and  knew  that  troops  of 
monkeys  were  feeding.  At  once  they  left  and  soared 
over  the  monkeys  and  succeeded  in  capturing  two, 
which  they  carried  to  the  tree  where  they  had  spent 
the  night,  and  devoured  them. 

TO 


THE    GUANIONIENS'    DEPARTURE 

After  this  bountiful  repast  they  said,  "  Now  that 
we  have  had  a  fine  meal  we  can  reach  our  destination 
without  difficulty." 

In  the  afternoon  a  small  black  spot  rose  above  the 
horizon  in  the  east.  It  gradually  grew  larger  and 
larger  against  the  sky,  in  spite  of  the  wind  which  blew 
against  it. 

The  old  guanionien  flew  to  his  mate  and  said: 
"  Dear,  by  the  look  of  the  sky  a  tornado  will  soon  be 
upon  us  ;  the  wind  will  blow  fiercely.  Let  us  find  a 
tree  upon  which  we  can  shelter  ourselves,  for  we  are 
not  strong  enough  to  fly  against  the  tornado,  and  we 
could  not  possibly  go  with  the  wind,  for  we  do  not 
know  where  it  would  take  us.  It  might  carry  us  to 
a  country  we  do  not  know." 

They  looked  around  them  and  saw  a  tall  tree,  and 
flew  toward  it  as  fast  as  their  wings  could  carry  them, 
and  soon  were  perched  in  its  centre,  being  protected 
thus  by  its  big  trunk  and  many  branches.  They 
knew  that  these  would  partly  break  the  force  of  the 
fearful  wind.  They  had  met  with  many  tornadoes 
during  their  lives. 

They  faced  the  black  spot,  for  they  knew  that  the 
tornado  was  to  blow  from  that  direction,  then  sunk 
their  huge  talons  deeply  into  the  wood  on  the  branch 
on  which  they  were  perched,  so  as  to  have  a  powerful 
hold  and  not  be  carried  away  when  the  tornado  fell 
upon  them.  They  made  themselves  as  small  as  they 
could  by  bending  their  legs,  and  shortening  their  necks. 

They  had  hardly  prepared  themselves  for  their  con- 

ii 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT   FOREST 


its 


flict  with  the  tornado  when  the  wind  blowing  against 
the  black  spot  stopped,  then  came  a  calm,  the  precursor 
of  the  tornado.  A  white  spot  rose  from  the  horizon 
under  the  now  huge  black  mass  that  had  gathered. 
It  was  the  tornado.  In  the  twinkling  of  an  eye  with 

terrific  force  it 
struck  the  tree 
upon  which 
the  guanion- 
iens  were. 
The  wind 
hissed  through 
branches, 
many  of 
which 
bent  as 
if  ready 
to  break, 
but  the 
guanioniens  had 
chosen  a  good 
place.  Never- 
*  theless,  they  had  a 
hard  time  to  hold  on  and  not  to 
be  blown  away. 
Then  the  wind  subsided,  and  terrific 
vivid  lightning  accompanied  by  claps  of  thunder  filled 
the  open  spaces  and  the  great  forest.  It  rained  in 
torrents  and  such  rain  as  is  only  known  under  the 
mountainous  equatorial  regions  of  that  great  forest. 

12 


THE    GUANIONIENS'    DEPARTURE 

It  stormed  and  thundered  the  rest  of  the  day  and 
during  almost  the  whole  of  the  night. 

The  guanioniens  had  pressed  their  feathers  close 
together.  Fortunately  they  were  well  oiled  and  the 
rain  ran  off  over  them,  so  that  their  skins  escaped  a 
drenching. 

In  spite  of  the  great  storm,  the  guanioniens  had 
short  naps,  at  times  being  awakened  by  the  vivid 
lightning  and  terrific  peals  of  thunder,  re-echoed  from 
mountain  to  mountain. 

At  daybreak  they  awoke,  and  one  said,  "  Dear,  we 
have  had  a  very  uncomfortable  night,  but  at  this 
season  of  the  year  we  shall  meet  many  more  of 
them."  Before  leaving  their  tree  for  their  journey, 
they  made  their  toilet,  and  it  took  them  quite  a 
while. 

Not  only  the  guanioniens,  but  all  the  birds  have  a 
bag  or  pouch  just  at  the  end  of  the  spinal  column 
near  the  tail,  full  of  an  oily  or  fatty  soft  substance, 
which  they  take  from  the  opening  with  their  beak  and 
with  which  they  oil  their  feathers.  The  guanioniens 
had  a  big  one  indeed,  making  a  large  protuberance. 

They  began  to  take  the  oily  substance  from  their 
pouches,  and  their  beaks  went  through  almost  every 
feather,  these  being  placed  one  upon  another  as  shingles 
on  a  roof.  They  were,  in  a  word,  combing  themselves. 
When  no  more  oil  was  left,  then  they  went  back  to 
their  pouches  for  more.  They  had  plenty  to  do,  for 
the  heavy  rain  of  the  night  had  taken  almost  all  the 
oily  matter  from  their  feathers.  When  they  had 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

finished  they  said  to  each  other,  "  Now  our  skins  are 
protected  against  the  rain."  It  was  just  as  good  as  if 
they  had  had  on  india-rubber  coats. 

After  their  toilets,  the  guanioniens  continued  their 
journey,  looking  for  prey  as  they  went  along,  soaring 
after  a  long  time  above  the  place  where  monkeys  were 
likely  to  come. 

One  day  they  saw  and  recognized  in  the  distance 
the  giant  tree  upon  which  was  their  nest.  They  flew 
toward  it  and  shortly  afterward  perched  upon  one  of 
its  branches  with  much  satisfaction. 

Looking  at  their  nest,  the  big  guanionien  said  to 
his  mate :  "  Dear,  our  nest  requires  much  repairing : 
it  is  terribly  weather-beaten ;  it  is  getting  quite  old, 
and  soon  we  shall  have  to  make  a  new  one.  We  have 
raised  many  little  guanioniens  in  this  dear  old  nest  of 
ours,  two  or  three  at  a  time.  Since  we  mated  we  have 
been  true  and  faithful  to  each  other,  for  we  guanioniens 
always  keep  true  to  our  mates.  What  care  these  little 
ones  have  given  us !  How  we  have  had  to  protect 
them  with  our  wings  from  cold  and  from  the  rain ! 
How  hard  we  have  had  to  work  to  feed  them,  and  to 
raise  them  until  they  could  get  a  living  for  themselves  ! 
I  wonder  where  they  all  are  now,  and  if  they  some 
times  think  of  their  parents.*1 

The  following  day  they  began  to  work  in  earnest  at 
repairing  their  nest.  They  went  in  search  of  small 
twigs  of  trees  and  interlaced  them  and  put  them  where 
they  were  needed.  Then  three  eggs  were  laid  in  it 
by  Mrs,  Guanionien. 


THE    GUANIONIENS'    DEPARTURE 

The  guanioniens  had  a  hard  time  while  they  hatched 
their  eggs,  and  became  quite  thin,  for  only  one  could 
go  after  monkeys  at  a  time,  and  these  were  not 
plentiful. 

They  watched  the  trees  and  could  see  the  fruits, 
berries,  and  nuts  getting  larger  every  day,  and  saw 
them  changing  color  and  coming  to  maturity,  and 
they  were  overjoyed,  for  their  lives  had  indeed  been 
hard  since  they  had  come  to  their  nest. 


CHAPTER    III 

THE  NGOZOS,  OR  GRAY  PARROTS  WITH  RED  TAILS 


are  many  kinds  of  birds  in  the  great 
forests.  Among  the  most  numerous  and  most 
intelligent  are  the  gray  ngozos  with  red  tails. 

These  ngozos,  when  young,  have  very  black  eyes, 
but  as  they  grow  older  a  yellow-whitish  ring  forms 
itself  round  the  black.  Many  of  them  live  to  be 
more  than  a  hundred  years  old. 

They  live  in  flocks  of  tens,  twenties,  thirties,  some 
times  even  fifties,  though  seldom  more.  Each  flock 
has  its  leader,  whom  it  obeys  implicitly.  He  is  chosen 
to  be  chief  because  he  is  supposed  to  be  wise,  and  to 
know  the  forest  and  where  food  is  to  be  found  at  the 
different  months  or  seasons  of  the  year.  Hence  he 
is  old  and  has  had  more  experience,  and  is  the  first  to 
give  the  signal  of  danger. 

It  is  the  custom  of  the  ngozos  to  meet  every  even 
ing,  sometimes  before  sunset,  to  tell  the  news,  —  what 
has  happened  and  where  food  is  to  be  found.  Then 
after  this  they  go  to  sleep. 

The  ngozos  and  the  monkeys  are  not  good  friends. 
The  ngozos  hate  the  monkeys  with  all  their  hearts, 
and  have  good  reason  to  do  so,  for  they  both  are 
fond  of  fruits,  berries,  and  nuts  ;  and  it  often  happens 

16 


THE   NGOZOS 


that  when  a  flock  of  ngozos  is  upon  a  tree,  enjoying 
its  delicious  meal  and  very  happy,  a  troop  of  monkeys 
suddenly  makes  its  appearance,  succeeds  in  driving 
the  ngozos  away,  takes  possession  of  the  tree,  and  eats 


up  the    fruit  so   that  when  the    ngozos    return  they 
find  nothing  left. 

Sometimes  they  have  regular  fights,  but  the  ngozos 
generally  get  the  worst  of  it,  and  have  to  fly  away, 
saying  all  kinds  of  saucy  things  to  the  monkeys. 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

One  evening,  flock  after  flock  of  ngozos  arrived  at 
their  place  of  meeting,  which  was  on  an  island  situated 
in  a  large  river.  There  they  felt  more  secure  from 
their  enemies  in  the  forest.  Many  had  travelled  a 
long  way,  but  they  knew  exactly  how  long  it  would 
take  them  for  their  homeward  journey,  and  though 
their  wings  were  tired,  they  were  not  exhausted. 

After  they  had  alighted,  all  the  ngozos  greeted  one 
another,  exclaiming,  "  Glad  to  see  you  !  Glad  to  see 
you !  Welcome  to  our  place  of  meeting." 

Such  a  pandemonium  of  ngozos'  voices  was  heard 
far  and  wide  in  the  forest,  for  at  least  ten  thousand  of 
them  were  there  perched  on  three  or  four  trees  that 
were  close  together.  They  jabbered  away  at  a  great 
rate.  A  stranger  would  have  thought  that  they  made 
too  much  noise  to  understand  one  another,  as  their 
voices  were  so  confused,  and  as  they  were  apparently 
all  speaking  at  the  same  time.  But  to  the  ngozos  it 
was  not  so  ;  they  held  a  conversation,  and  one  ngozo 
was  talking  to  one  of  several  of  his  friends  who  were 
listening  to  him. 

Though  there  were  five  or  six  hundred  leaders  of 
flocks  in  this  great  army  of  ngozos,  each  leader  knew 
every  member  of  his  flock,  and  every  ngozo  knew  his 
leader  and  recognized  his  voice,  just  as  he  recognized 
their  voices  also.  He  knew  the  number  of  his  flock, 
and  if  one  were  missing  he  could  tell  which,  and  the 
other  members  of  the  flock  likewise.  No  doubt  each 
ngozo  had  a  name  known  to  the  others  of  the  flock. 

As  they  were  telling  the  news,  the  leader  of  one 

18 


THE    NGOZOS 

flock  of  ngozos  said  :  "  We  have  come  back  hungry 
this  evening,  for  when  we  came  to  the  trees  we  had 
seen  loaded  with  our  food  of  berries  and  nuts,  we 
found  they  were  all  gone,  for  the  monkeys  had  been 
there  and  eaten  everything  in  sight.  We  were  very 
angry,  and  during  the  day  we  had  to  fly  over  the 
forest  and  alight  here  and  there  to  pick  what  we  could. 
But  almost  everywhere  the  monkeys  had  been  before 
us,  and  left  only  unripened  berries  or  nuts,  and  we 
had  to  content  ourselves  with  these,  and  few  at  that." 

After  hearing  this  tale  of  woe,  all  the  ngozos  with 
one  voice  cried,  "  We  hate  the  monkeys ;  ugly  mon 
keys  !  "  The  noise  was  terrific  when  they  said  this,  for 
they  said  these  words  all  at  the  same  time  and  they 
repeated  them  several  times  in  succession,  with  anger. 
Oh,  what  a  noise  they  made  ! 

The  ngozos  of  another  flock,  when  they  heard  this, 
said :  "  We  are  sorry  for  you,  dear  ngozos  ;  it  is  too 
bad  that  you  came  home  hungry.  We  came  to  a  part 
of  the  forest  where  all  the  tops  of  the  trees  were  cov 
ered  with  beautiful  ripened  fruits ;  they  were  fine,  and 
we  ate  them  all  day  long,  and  no  horrid  monkeys 
came  to  disturb  us.  They  were  busy  somewhere  else 
eating  our  food." 

They  called  it  "  our  food,"  for  the  parrots  consid 
ered  the  berries,  nuts,  and  fruits  of  the  forest  as  their 
own,  and  thought  that  the  monkeys  had  no  business 
to  eat  them.  The  monkeys  thought  likewise  of  the 
ngozos. 

Then  some  ngozos  belonging  to  another  flock  said: 

'9 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

"  We  flew  over  a  village  of  human  beings,  and  saw  a 
number  of  our  kin  in  the  place.  They  could  not  fly  ; 
their  wings  were  cut ;  we  spoke  to  them,  but  they 
could  not  understand  us,  neither  could  we  understand 
them." 

The  reason  they  could  not  understand  each  other 
was  because  the  ngozos  in  the  village  of  the  human 
beings  had  been  captured  in  their  nests  when  their 
bodies  were  covered  with  down,  and  had  only  learned 
the  language  of  the  human  beings.  They  had  no 
ngozos  to  teach  them  the  language  of  their  kin  living 
in  the  forest.  They  had  invented  a  jargon  of  their 
own,  which  they  used  when  they  did  not  speak  the 
human  language. 

Some  flocks  advised  others  not  to  go  where  they 
had  been,  for  there  was  very  little  food  to  be  found ; 
others  told  where  monkeys  were  numerous,  or  where 
they  were  not. 

It  was  getting  late,  near  sunset,  and  all  the  flocks 
ought  to  have  arrived ;  but  the  ngozos  noticed  that 
two  were  still  absent.  They  were  very  much  excited, 
and  began  to  be  afraid  some  great  misfortune  had 
happened  to  the  missing  ones,  and  talked  loudly  to 
one  another.  They  wondered  why  no  stragglers  had 
arrived. 

Suddenly  they  heard  voices  above  them.  It  was 
one  of  the  flocks  arriving.  "  We  are  coming  !  "  said 
the  belated  ones ;  "  we  are  coming !  "  and  they 
alighted.  "  Welcome  ! "  said  all  the  ngozos  at  the 
same  time. 

20 


THE   NGOZOS 

"  What  makes  you  so  late  ?  "  cried  all  the  ngozos. 

"Well,  we  have  come  from  a  long  way  off,  and 
our  wings  are  tired.  We  had  great  trouble  to  find 
food  enough  to-day  to  satisfy  our  hunger,  for  the 
monkeys  had  been  there  before  us  this  morning.  We 
went  a  great  distance,  and,  guided  by  our  leader,  we 
came  to  a  region  in  which  food  was  plentiful,  and 
which  the  monkeys  had  not  found  out.  Several  flocks 
can  find  plenty  of  food  there  to-morrow,  provided  the 
ugly  monkeys  do  not  find  the  place." 

"  Horrid  monkeys  ! "  chattered  all  the  ngozos  at 
once. 

The  ngozos  waited  anxiously  for  the  only  flock 
missing.  They  were  much  distressed.  Had  the 
flock  left  them  to  go  to  another  place?  The  sun 
had  set,  and  it  was  fast  growing  dark,  for  in  the 
forest  darkness  comes  soon  after  sunset.  Soon,  to 
their  great  joy,  they  heard  above  their  heads  the 
voices  of  the  missing  ones,  and  a  great  cry  arose 
among  them.  "  Welcome  !  "  they  shouted  with  one 
voice. 

The  flock  alighted.  "  What  makes  you  so  late  ? 
It  is  almost  dark,"  cried  the  ngozos  together. 

"  Don't  speak  of  it,"  cried  the  belated  flock. 
"  Don't  speak  of  it.  We  had  an  awful  fight  with  the 
monkeys,  and  we  are  lucky  to  have  escaped  with 
our  lives  from  their  clutches." 

"  Hateful  monkeys  !  "  cried  all  the  ngozos. 

"  See  how  dilapidated  some  of  us  look,"  said  one 
of  the  late  comers;  and  one  of  the  flock,  turning  her 


21 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT   FOREST 

back,  cried,  "  Look  at  me.  I  am  almost  without  a 
tail.  An  ugly  monkey  plucked  it  off.  It  was  hard 
for  me  to  fly  and  reach  our  meeting-place,  for  having 
hardly  any  tail  I  flew  with  difficulty." 

"  Look  at  me,"  said  a  second  one,  as  he  also 
turned  his  back  to  the  ngozos.  "My  feathers  are 
all  gone  between  my  wings.  I  wonder  how  I  es 
caped  from  that  savage  monkey." 

All  the  ngozos  listened  silently  when  they  heard 
this  tale  of  woe. 


A  third  one  said,  "  Look  at  me,  ngozos.  See  the 
state  of  my  poor  feathers  and  how  many  have  been 
plucked  by  one  of  those  monkeys.  But  I  suc 
ceeded  in  giving  him  a  bite  and  cut  off  one  of  his 
fingers,  and  he  had  to  let  me  go.  He  gave  such 
a  cry  of  pain." 

"  Good  for  you  !  "  shouted  all  the  parrots ;  "  good 
for  you,  ngozos  !  " 

"  How  did  the  fight  happen  ? "  asked  one  of  the 
wise  ones  who  had  been  listening.  "  Tell  us." 

Then  the  chief  of  the  flock  said :  £C  Our  flock  was 
on  a  tree  feasting  on  delicious  fruits,  when  suddenly 


22 


THE    NGOZOS 

we  heard  a  troop  of  monkeys  coming.  Soon  they 
leaped  on  our  tree  and  wanted  to  drive  us  away,  and 
attacked  us.  We  tried  to  resist,  but  the  monkeys  are 
so  quick  of  motion,  and  they  have  hands  and  feet  that 
can  clutch,  while  we  ngozos  can  only  bite.  The  com 
bat  was  unequal.  One  of  our  number  was  killed  by 
them.  The  reason  that  we  are  so  late  is  that  we  had 
to  fly  slowly  on  account  of  our  disabled  ones.  We 
did  not  want  to  leave  them  behind,  for  we  are  all  good 
comrades  and  we  love  one  another  dearly." 

"  That  was  right.  You  are  true  ngozos,"  cried 
they  all. 

Then  came  a  shrill  chorus,  and  all  the  ngozos 
shrieked  again,  "We  hate  the  monkeys."  But  soon 
the  jabbering  among  the  ngozos  became  less  and  less, 
for  many  were  getting  sleepy.  Then  quiet  settled 
down  on  the  army.  All  had  fallen  asleep,  after, 
however,  having  first  agreed  where  the  flocks  should 
go  to  the  next  morning. 

Long  before  dawn,  between  three  and  four  o'clock, 
all  the  ngozos  were  awake  and  talked  to  one  another. 
When  ready  for  their  journey,  each  leader  said  to  his 
flock, "  Be  ready,  ngozos;  we  must  hurry."  His  flock 
would  answer,  "  We  are  ready."  "  Follow  me,  then," 
would  say  the  leader  as  he  flew  away,  followed  by  all 
the  numbers  that  belonged  to  him. 

Flock  after  flock  of  ngozos  left  one  after  another, 
after  saying,  cc  Good-by,"  "  Good  luck  to  you." 
"  Good  luck  to  you,"  was  the  answer,  and  in  less 
than  ten  minutes  they  all  had  left.  Some  flocks 

23 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT   FOREST 

flew  toward  the  north,  others  to  the  east,  west,  south, 
to  some  particular  part  of  the  forest  where  they 
thought  they  would  find  plenty  of  food.  They  were 
all  in  a  great  hurry  to  reach  the  different  places,  so 
as  to  be  there  before  the  monkeys,  the  small  flocks 
going  where  there  were  only  a  few  fruit-bearing  trees 
to  be  found,  and  the  flock  that  had  been  so  badly 
beaten  by  the  monkeys  going  to  the  nearest  food 
place. 

The  ngozos  possess  the  wonderful  gift  of  knowing 
their  way  through  the  air;  the  trees  are  their  land 
marks,  as  they  fly  above  the  forest  and  look  down 
to  discover  any  fruit-bearing  trees. 

A  very  old  ngozo,  about  eighty  years  old,  with 
powdered  feathers  and  deep  yellow  eyes  (which  is  a 
sign  of  old  age),  who  was  the  last  to  go  away,  said  to 
his  flock  :  "  I  know  of  a  place  where  at  this  time  of 
the  year  there  are  trees  that  must  be  loaded  with  fruit 
[and  he  named  the  fruit].  I  will  lead  you  there." 

"Good  for  you,  our  chief!"  cried  all  the  ngozos. 
"You  are  a  good  chief.  With  you  we  shall  find 
plenty  of  food." 

After  a  journey  of  about  twenty  miles,  the  old 
leader  said  to  his  flock,  "  Look  yonder.  Do  you 
see  the  tree-tops  red  with  fruit?"  And  they  looked 
in  that  direction  and  saw  trees  red  with  fruit,  and  all 
uttered  cries  of  joy,  saying,  "  What  a  good  morning's 
meal  we  are  going  to  have ! "  They  flew  with  still 
greater  rapidity  and  soon  alighted  upon  the  trees. 
"We  are  here  just  in  season,"  they  all  exclaimed  at 

24 


THE    NGOZOS 


the  same  time.  Then  they  remained  perfectly  silent, 
so  as  not  to  attract  other  ngozos,  and  also  so  as  not 
to  let  the  monkeys  know  where  they  were.  The  fruits 
were  very  dainty.  Soon  every  ngozo  was  enjoying  his 
meal,  holding  the  fruit  in  his  claw  (for  they  use  their 
feet  as  we  do  our  hands)  and  peeling  it  with  his  beak. 


•u     * 

<*/ 


After  having  had 
a  good  meal,  they 
flew  away  to  an 
other  part  of  the 
forest,  where  their  leader  thought  they  would  find  a 
kind  of  nut  they  liked  very  much. 

Halfway  they  settled  upon  a  tree  to  feed,  when 
suddenly  a  stranger  alighted  among  them.  They 
looked  at  the  new-comer,  and  at  once  wanted  to  drive 
him  away,  for  he  did  not  belong  to  their  flock.  Great 
cries  of  rage  were  heard  among  them  ;  but  as  they 
were  preparing  to  fight  the  poor  wanderer,  the  chief 
of  the  flock  cried  with  a  very  piercing  and  command- 

25 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

ing  voice :  "  Do  not  drive  him  away.  He  is  lost.  For 
some  reason  or  another  he  is  solitary.  Don't  you  see 
that  he  belongs  to  our  kin,  and  has  a  gray  body  and 
a  red  tail  ?  Let  us  welcome  him."  The  ngozos  did 
so  at  once  in  a  chorus.  But,  to  their  utter  astonish 
ment,  they  found  that  the  stranger  could  not  under 
stand  what  they  said  to  him ;  and  when  he  spoke  to 
them  they  could  not  understand  what  he  said,  and 
they  marvelled  at  that,  and  looked  at  their  new  friend 
with  amazement  and  did  not  know  what  to  make 
of  him. 

The  fact  was  that  the  poor  ngozo  had  escaped  from 
a  village  of  human  beings,  one  of  whom  had  taken 
him  away  from  his  nest  when  he  was  a  baby  ngozo. 
He  had  given  him  to  his  wife,  who  fed  him  and  raised 
him  tenderly  and  taught  him  to  speak  or  listen  to  her 
words.  Consequently,  he  had  not  learned  the  lan 
guage  of  the  ngozos,  not  having  lived  among  them. 
He  spoke  at  times  a  queer  kind  of  jargon  which  he 
and  two  or  three  captive  ngozos  of  the  village  had 
invented  for  use  among  themselves. 

In  the  evening  the  stranger  followed  them.  He 
had  been  admitted  as  one  of  the  members  of  the  flock, 
and  when  they  arrived  at  a  certain  place  they  met 
other  ngozos.  All  marvelled  at  the  new-comer,  who 
was  exactly  like  themselves,  but  could  not  understand 
them,  as  they  could  not  understand  him.  But  never 
theless  they  were  soon  friends. 

The  hour  came  when  the  flock  thought  it  was  time 
to  return  to  the  island  where  all  the  ngozos  met,  and 

26 


THE    NGOZOS 

they  started  and  before  long  reached  the  place  with 
the  new  friend  they  had  adopted  that  day.  As  usual 
they  had  their  talk  out  and  then  went  to  sleep. 

That  night  this  ngozo  stranger  thought  of  the 
home  he  had  left,  of  his  mistress  who  had  been  so 
kind  to  him,  and  how  much  he  was  petted  by  the 
people.  The  next  morning  he  followed  the  flock 
that  had  received  him.  He  had  no  one  to  bring  him 
his  breakfast,  and  henceforth  he  would  have  to  work 
for  his  living.  It  was  a  new  life  before  him,  but  after 
a  while  he  found  that  it  was  much  better  to  be  free, 
even  if  you  had  to  work  for  a  living,  instead  of  having 
some  one  to  take  care  of  you  and  be  a  slave. 

Often  the  adopted  stranger,  when  his  people  (the 
other  ngozos)  were  resting  on  a  tree,  would  talk  the 
language  of  the  human  beings  who  had  brought  him 
up.  While  he  did  so,  the  other  ngozos  listened  in 
silence.  It  did  not  take  them  long  to  learn  the 
language  of  the  human  beings  through  their  new 
friend.  He  wondered  why  and  how  they  could  learn 
so  quickly  from  him,  while  it  had  taken  him  so  long 
to  learn  the  same  language.  The  reason  was  that  the 
ngozos  learn  much  more  quickly  from  one  another. 

He  also  learned  quickly  the  speech  of  his  kin,  and 
after  a  while  could  talk  the  language  of  wild  gray 
ngozos  as  well  as  the  rest  of  them.  Nevertheless, 
though  years  passed  away,  he  never  forgot  some  of 
the  words  his  master  and  mistress  had  taught  him, 
and  he  remembered  them  to  his  death. 

One  evening  after  all  the  flocks  had  arrived,  the 

27 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT   FOREST 

ngozos'  chiefs  said,  "  Now  it  is  time  for  us  to  start  for 
the  Land  of  Plenty/' 

"  Yes,"  cried  all  the  ngozos,  "  it  is  time  for  us  to 
start  for  the  Land  of  Plenty.  A  grand  time  we 
will  all  have  there." 

"  This  is  the  moon  of  tornadoes,  thunder,  lightning, 
of  great  heat,"  said  one  chief.  "  Fruit  and  nuts  will 
soon  be  ripe  in  that  far-off  country."  And  all  the 
ngozos  kept  repeating  over  and  over  again,  "It  is 
time  for  us  to  travel  toward  the  Land  of  Plenty." 

It  was  agreed  among  them  that  this  should  be 
the  last  day  of  the  season  they  were  all  to  stay  and 
sleep  at  the  dear  old  place,  where  they  had  had  so 
many  chats  together,  and  they  were  sad ;  but  the  glo 
rious  time  they  were  to  have  in  the  Land  of  Plenty 
from  morning  to  night  made  them  feel  that  they 
must  go,  for  of  late  they  had  had  a  hard  time  to 
get  food. 

The  ngozos  are  very  wise,  and  they  agreed  to 
scatter  and  take  different  ways,  for  otherwise  they 
would  starve,  there  were  so  many  of  them. 

As  usual  when  daylight  came,  flock  after  flock  left, 
bidding  each  other  good-by,  to  meet  again  in  the 
Land  of  Plenty. 

In  the  evening  only  a  few  flocks  returned  to  the 
old  place  of  meeting.  But  the  trees  did  not  seem 
the  same  to  them.  There  was  a  look  of  sadness 
among  the  ngozos,  —  so  many  dear  friends  and  faces 
were  missing.  There  was  less  bustle,  less  chattering, 
less  noise,  less  laughing  (for  the  ngozos  laugh). 

28 


THE    NGOZOS 

Three  days  afterward  not  one  ngozo  was  to  be 
seen  on  the  trees.  They  all  had  left  for  their  prom 
ised  land.  Flock  after  flock  were  spread  over  a  vast 
extent  of  country,  flying  over  the  trees.  They  saw 
once  in  a  while  a  troop  of  monkeys  and  bore  them 
no  good  will. 

When  the  ngozos  saw  any  nut-  or  fruit-bearing  trees, 
they  alighted  upon  them,  and  after  they  had  fed,  con 
tinued  their  journey.  Several  flocks  had  trouble  with 
the  monkeys  while  feeding.  When  they  came  near, 
the  ngozos  made  fearful  noises,  their  feathers  rose  on 
their  backs,  and  their  tails  spread,  showing  how  angry 
they  were.  They  gave  all  kinds  of  bad  names  to  the 
monkeys. 

The  monkeys  did  not  know  what  the  ngozos  said 
to  them,  as  they  did  not  understand  their  language. 
But  they  knew  they  were  angry,  and  every  time  the 
poor  ngozos  had  to  get  out  of  their  way  when  they 
had  made  up  their  minds  to  climb  on  their  tree. 


29 


CHAPTER   IV 

THE    NKEMAS,   OR    MONKEYS,   TRAVEL    TOWARD    THE 
LAND    OF    PLENTY 

WHILE  the  guanioniens  were  hatching  their 
eggs,  the  monkeys  began  to  think  that  it  was 
time  to  start  on  their  journey  to  the  Land  of  Plenty, 
a  journey  which  they  took  every  year.  They  remem 
bered  the  great  time  they  had  in  that  land,  and  how 
loaded  many  of  the  trees  were  with  berries,  nuts,  and 
fruits.  What  feasts  they  had,  and  how  fat  they  had 
become  while  there,  even  before  they  had  eaten  up 
everything  in  sight ! 

From  many  distant  parts  of  the  great  forest  north 
and  south,  east  and  west,  troops  of  monkeys  accord 
ingly  were  travelling  to  the  Land  of  Plenty. 

Among  those  were  the  white-mustached  miengai,  the 
red-headed  nkago,  the  jet-black,  long-haired  mondi, 
the  white-nosed  ndova,  the  bluish-black  oganagana, 
the  nchegai,  and  the  mpondai. 

Each  troop  was  hurrying  as  fast  as  possible,  so 
as  to  reach  the  Land  of  Plenty  before  all  the  other 
monkeys,  and  even  before  the  ngozos.  All  the 
creatures  of  the  forest  do  likewise ;  hence  they  all 
start  at  the  dawn  of  the  day. 

30 


THE    NKEMAS,  OR    MONKEYS 

Each  species  of  monkey  has  a  distinct  language  of 
its  own,  and  so  easily  recognizable  that  the  other  crea 
tures  of  the  forest  can  tell  which  kind  of  monkey  is 
talking.  The  various  species  do  not  mingle  with  one 
another.  The  number  in  each  troop  is  from  ten  to 
twenty  or  thirty ;  sometimes,  but  rarely,  even  as  many 
as  fifty.  Every  troop  has  its  leader,  chosen  for  his 
cunning  and  knowledge  of  the  places  where  food  is  to 
be  found  at  different  seasons,  months,  and  sometimes 
even  in  different  weeks  in  the  forest. 

The  monkeys  never  eat  any  kind  of  new  food 
without  first  smelling  it  to  find  out  whether  or  no  it 
is  poisonous,  for  the  forests  abound  in  poisonous 
fruits,  which  are  sometimes  most  tempting  and  deceiv 
ing  in  appearance,  and,  if  bad,  the  monkeys  throw 
them  away  at  once. 

They  know  all  the  trees,  rocks,  brooks,  and  other 
landmarks.  They  choose  a  track  or  path  where  they 
can  find  food  on  their  way. 

Among  the  monkeys  who  were  thus  travelling  was 
a  troop  of  white-nosed  ndovas,  numbering  about 
twenty-five.  Their  leader  was  a  very  knowing  old 
fellow,  who  had  by  his  quick  sight  and  acute  hearing 
and  cunning  warned  them  many  a  time  of  danger, 
so  that  they  could  escape.  All  the  troop  believed 
in  his  wisdom  and  had  great  confidence  in  his 
judgment. 

For  nearly  fifteen  consecutive  years  the  old  ndova 
had  made  the  trip  to  the  Land  of  Plenty. 

One  evening  before  going  to  sleep,  the  chief  said 

31 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

to  his  followers :  "  Strange  is  our  life.  The  trees  are 
our  home ;  we  never  sleep  twice  on  the  same  one  ; 
we  have  to  travel  all  the  year  round  in  search  of  food, 
and  sometimes  food  is  so  scarce  that  we  have  to  go 
long  distances  and  then  get  only  a  scant  living.  In 
deed,  at  certain  times  of  the  year  we  have  to  work 
hard  for  our  living.  We  have  even  to  walk  on  the 
ground  to  pick  up  what  we  can  get.  When  we  are 
walking  we  are  timid,  for  it  is  only  when  we  are  in 
the  trees  that  we  feel  at  home.  Leaping  from  one 
tree  to  another,  we  can  travel  very  fast." 

"  That  is  so,"  said  all  the  ndovas,  when  they  heard 
their  leader  speak  these  words  of  wisdom ;  "  we  are 
glad  to  have  you  for  a  chief." 

"  Yes,"  he  replied,  "  but  I  am  getting  old,  and  soon 
the  younger  ndovas  will  drop  me  and  choose  another 
chief." 

"  Not  yet,  not  yet ;  not  for  a  long  time  yet,"  cried 
all  the  younger  ndovas. 

Soon  deep  silence  reigned  among  them.  They 
all  had  fallen  asleep. 

At  daylight  they  got  ready  for  their  long  journey. 
And  their  chief  said  to  his  followers,  "  We  shall  have 
to  travel  fast  to-day,  for  food  will  be  scarce  on  our 
way." 

Soon  after  the  ndovas  started  on  their  journey,  the 
old  chief  leading,  while  four  or  five  of  the  strongest 
were  almost  abreast  of  him,  the  others  following. 
They  did  not  run  or  walk  on  the  branches  of  trees, 
but  travelled  as  they  always  do  on  such  occasions  when 


THE    NKEMAS,   OR    MONKEYS 

they  make  a  long  journey.  They  took  flying  leaps, 
falling  on  the  end  of  the  branches  they  reached,  their 
weight  bringing  down  with  great  force  the  limbs  of 
the  tree  upon  which  they  fell,  ten  or  twelve  feet  and 
sometimes  more,  the  limbs  then  rebounding  with 
great  force. 

On  the  rebound  with  astonishing  quickness  and 
unerring  eyes  they  sprang  to  the  extremity  of  another 
branch. 


These  leaps  varied  in  length  from  ten  to  fifteen  or 
twenty  feet.  Their  feet  and  hands  caught  with  great 
firmness  and  precision  the  flexible  limb  upon  which 
they  landed.  Their  eyes  measured  instantly  the  space 
to  be  leaped  over  and  the  branch  to  be  reached. 
Their  quick  ways  are  one  of  the  gifts  given  to  many 
of  the  monkey  tribe.  On  their  journey  the  ndovas 
found  themselves  sometimes  on  trees  higher  than  all 
the  surrounding  ones.  Then  they  had  to  leap  down 
some  forty  or  fifty  feet,  and  the  limbs  upon  which 
3  33 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

they  fell,  bent  with  a  great  crash  and  rebounded  with 
amazing  force. 

Thus  they  went  on  incessantly  for  several  hours,  all 
keeping  silent,  never  uttering  a  cry,  and  at  the  rate 
of  about  fifteen  miles  an  hour.  The  sound  of  the 
bending  and  rebounding  of  the  branches  of  trees,  the 
rustle  of  their  leaves,  was  heard  by  many  creatures  of 
the  forest,  who  said,  "  The  monkeys  are  travelling." 

At  last  they  came  to  several  trees  covered  with 
nuts.  There  was  great  joy  among  all  the  ndovas  at 
the  sight.  The  leader  had  taken  them  to  the  right 
place.  They  might  have  passed  the  spot  either  on 
the  right  or  on  the  left  without  knowing  it,  for  the 
trees  were  so  thick. 

They  were  there  before  any  other  troop  of  monkeys 
or  flock  of  parrots.  So  they  had  it  all  to  themselves, 
and  soon  were  cracking  nuts  and  eating  them  as  fast 
as  they  could. 

After  the  ndovas  had  eaten  until  they  could  eat  no 
more,  they  were  somewhat  lazy.  They  moved  quietly, 
and  leaped  gently  from  one  branch  of  a  tree  to  another 
to  amuse  themselves.  They  played  with  and  ran 
after  one  another. 

Some  of  the  old  ones  were  by  themselves.  There 
was  one  hanging  to  a  branch  of  a  tree  by  one  arm. 
Suddenly  one  of  his  companions,  getting  hold  of 
his  legs,  hung  by  them,  the  branch  bending  heavily 
down  with  the  combined  weight  of  the  two.  "  Let 
go  !  Get  away  !  "  shouted  the  upper  one  with  all  his 
lungs.  cc  You  are  too  heavy.  I  am  going  to  drop. 

34 


THE   NKEMAS,  OR   MONKEYS 

My  hands  cannot  hold  the  branch  much  longer." 
When  the  other  heard  this,  he  laughed  at  his  friend 
and  let  go  and  dropped.  Another  one  would  raise 
himself  with  his  arms,  climb  over  his  fellow,  and  then 
run  off  pursued  by  the  angry  ndova,  who  did  not  like 
to  have  such  tricks  played  on  him.  Then  both  would 
stop,  glare  at  each  other,  and  peace  was  made. 

Some  of  the  ndovas  were  hanging  downward,  look 
ing  at  their  friends  underneath,  who  were  quiet  and 
holding  a  conversation.  Others  were  looking  search- 
ingly  in  the  skin  of  a  comrade  who  was  lying  on  his 
back  on  a  big  limb  of  a  tree  and  picking  out  any  little 
thing  they  saw  in  his  fur.  They  all  seemed  to  enjoy 
this  immensely,  especially  the  one  lying  on  his  back. 
He  had  the  best  of  it.  He  loved  to  be  scratched. 

A  number  were  very  lively,  and  were  running  after 
one  another,  to  see  which  could  run  the  fastest  and 
escape.  They  shouted :  "  You  cannot  catch  me.  I 
dare  you."  They  would  leap  from  one  branch  to 
another,  then  stop  and  grin  at  their  companions  who 
could  not  catch  them.  These  were  the  young  mem 
bers  of  the  troop.  A  good  meal  did  not  make  them 
lazy. 

Some  ndovas  made  queer  grimaces  at  each  other. 
Others  were  quarrelling  for  one  reason  and  another. 
They  uttered  sounds  of  defiance  and  were  full  of  fight, 
daring  and  tantalizing  one  another,  their  angry  eyes 
almost  sticking  out  of  their  sockets. 

One  or  two  ndovas  lay  on  their  backs,  quietly  rest 
ing  on  a  heavy  limb  of  a  tree,  holding  to  a  branch  to 

35 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

steady  themselves  or  so  as  not  to  tumble  down.  Sud 
denly  they  were  seen  by  some  other  ndovas  above, 
who  came  and  disturbed  them.  Then  came  a  short 
fight. 

Their  chief  was  quietly  looking  on  at  his  followers. 
All  at  once  he  gave  a  cry  of  alarm  well  known  among 
the  ndovas,  which  meant,  "  Let  us  be  off;  there  is 
danger."  There  was  a  cry  of  fear  from  the  other 
ndovas  and  a  general  stampede,  all  going  to  the  left 
from  the  danger,  for  that  peculiar  cry  of  the  chief 
meant  they  were  to  run  from  the  right. 

It  was  which  among  them  could  run  the  fastest. 
They  leaped  from  tree  to  tree,  from  the  extremity  of 
one  branch  to  the  end  of  another  branch,  and  so  the 
whole  troop  went  on.  They  were  in  full  flight  and 
going  as  fast  as  they  could.  It  did  not  take  them 
long  to  get  out  of  the  supposed  danger  and  far  from 
the  place.  When  they  thought  they  were  safe,  they 
slackened  their  speed. 

Suddenly  a  peculiar  sound  or  cry  was  uttered  by 
their  chief,  which  meant  for  them  to  stop.  Then 
when  they  had  come  together  he  said  to  them,  "  We 
had  a  narrow  escape.  A  huge  tree  omemba  [serpent] 
was  coming  toward  us."  They  rested  a  little  while 
and  then  continued  their  journey  toward  the  Land  of 
Plenty.  They  came  to  a  cluster  of  trees  loaded  with 
nuts  and  all  uttered  cries  of  joy  at  the  sight.  Their 
chief  had  led  them  right;  they  were  not  to  starve. 
They  broke  the  shells  and  ate  the  kernels  with  great 
avidity.  When  their  appetites  were  satisfied  they 

36 


THE   NKEMAS,  OR    MONKEYS 

filled  the  pouches  inside  of  their  cheeks  until  the  skin 
of  these  was  so  distended  that  they  could  hold  no 
more. 

"If  we  do  not  find  food,"  said  they,  "we  will  eat 
the  nuts  that  we  have  stored  in  our  pouches.  How 
nice  it  is  for  us  to  have  such  pouches,  so  that  we  can 
carry  provisions  with  us  and  eat  them  on  the  way 
when  hungry  ! " 

Then  they  resumed  their  journey,  for  the  Land  of 
Plenty  was  still  far  away.  "  Let  us  hurry  as  fast  as 
we  can,"  they  said,  "  so  as  to  be  the  first  on  the 
spot." 

But  an  hour  or  two  afterward,  they  slackened  their 
speed  and  stopped,  walking  leisurely  on  the  branches 
of  trees.  They  were  hungry,  and  began  to  eat  the 
food  they  had  stored  in  their  pouches.  These  were 
so  full  that  they  had  to  use  their  hands  outside  to 
press  out  the  pieces  of  nuts. 

After  this  they  continued  their  journey,  and  when 
it  was  nearly  sunset  stopped,  and  prepared  for  their 
night's  rest.  Some  quarrelled  for  places.  But  soon 
all  were  seated  comfortably  on  their  haunches  with 
their  legs  bent,  their  heads  gradually  fell  on  their 
breasts,  and  they  were  ere  long  fast  asleep.  They 
remained  undisturbed  the  whole  of  the  night. 

Early  the  following  day  the  ndovas  were  again  on 
the  march.  During  the  day,  while  they  were  resting 
and  chattering,  the  whistling  of  several  arrows  was 
heard  among  them,  and  two  of  their  number  were 
pierced  and  killed  and  fell  to  the  ground  with  a  great 

37 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

crash.  All  the  ndovas,  giving  a  cry  of  alarm,  fled 
with  the  greatest  speed.  They  knew  that  those 
arrows  had  been  shot  by  human  beings,  for  several 
of  their  number  had  been  killed  in  that  manner 
before.  They  were  not  afraid  of  the  apes,  or  "  men 
of  the  woods,"  but  they  knew  well  what  human 
beings  were  like,  and  every  time  they  saw  them 
they  fled. 

Having  run  a  long  way,  they  stopped.  They  were 
all  sad  and  mourned  greatly  the  death  of  their  two 
companions.  The  chief  said,  "  We  never  know  where 
these  human  beings  are  lying  in  wait  for  us.  They 
are  so  sly.  They  are  under  trees  on  which  we  feed 
before  we  know  it,  and  often  they  take  us  unawares, 
though  we  watch  and  are  on  the  lookout  for  them." 

After  a  pause  another  wise  ndova  said  :  "  Next  the 
human  beings  our  greatest  enemy  is  the  guanionien. 
He  swoops  down  upon  us,  seizes  us  in  his  powerful 
claws,  carries  us  up  in  the  air,  and  then  alights  upon 
a  tree  and  devours  us.  How  we  dread  him  !  He 
is  worse  than  a  human  being.  We  have  to  be  con 
stantly  on  the  lookout  for  him,  for  we  can  never  scent 
him,  and  before  we  know  it  one  of  us  is  carried 
away.  So  we  have  to  watch  above  our  heads  for  the 
guanioniens,  and  under  the  trees  for  the  human  be 
ings.  Fortunately  there  are  not  very  many  of  these 
horrid  guanioniens." 

A  third  ndova,  after  listening  to  this,  asked  :  "  What 
about  the  big  tree  snakes  ?  Has  no  one  seen  one  of 
them  after  us  on  this  journey  ?  " 

38 


u  Here  is  a  huge  manga  " 


THE    NKEMAS,  OR   MONKEYS 

In  the  course  of  the  day  the  ndovas  came  to  a  stream 
and  followed  its  banks  until  it  became  narrow  enough 
for  them  to  leap  to  the  other  side. 

They  stopped  to  rest  on  a  tree  overlooking  the 
river,  when  suddenly  they  spied  a  strange  creature 
swimming  along  the  banks.  At  first  they  could  only 
see  his  head.  "Here  is  a  huge  manga  [manatee]," 
said  the  chief  of  the  ndovas  to  his  followers.  "  He  is 
feeding  on  the  leaves  of  the  trees  that  hang  with  their 
branches  touching  the  water.  Look  at  him  !  how  big 
he  is  !  [the  monster  weighs  sometimes  fifteen  hun 
dred  pounds].  What  a  clumsy  animal !  He  is  eating 
leaves,  and  yet  he  never  gets  out  of  the  water,  never 
lands  on  the  shore.  How  small  his  eyes  are  !  " 

The  manga  is  indeed  wonderful !  on  his  sides  are 
fins,  or  hands  without  nails,  which  he  uses  as  oars  to 
swim  with,  and  his  tail  is  flat,  and  with  the  help 
of  his  paddles  he  can  raise  his  body  up  vertically, 
and  this  enables  him  to  feed  on  the  leaves  of  the  trees, 
while  the  gentle  motion  of  his  paddles  or  hands  help 
him  to  keep  his  upright  position.  His  body,  ten  or 
twelve  feet  long,  is  dark  gray  with  a  few  bristles  about 
one  inch  in  length  here  and  there  on  the  skin. 

The  stream  was  clear,  and  the  movements  of  the 
manga  could  be  easily  seen  as  he  swam  and  moved 
along  eating  the  leaves.  The  ndovas  watched  the 
manga  with  great  curiosity ;  they  were  not  afraid,  for 
they  knew  he  could  not  climb  trees.  Then  they  con 
tinued  their  journey. 

That  evening  the  ndovas  all  went  to  sleep  with  a 

39 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

sorrowful  heart,  especially  the  two  that  had  lost  their 
companions. 

At  daybreak  they  continued  their  journey.  They 
met  soon  after  their  departure  with  a  great  adventure. 
They  came  to  a  tree  in  one  of  whose  hollows  was  a 
beehive.  Immediately  the  bees  attacked  the  ndovas 
with  great  fierceness  and  stung  several  of  them.  They 
uttered  loud  cries  of  pain,  and  all  fled  with  the  greatest 
haste,  shouting  in  the  language  of  the  ndovas,  "  Horrid 
bees  !  Horrid  bees  !  " 

Toward  noon  the  troop  came  to  a  number  of  trees 
covered  with  nice  fruit.  As  they  were  eating  quietly, 
they  heard  the  sound  of  a  moving  branch,  telling  them 
that  another  troop  of  monkeys  was  coming.  The 
noise  became  more  distinct;  evidently  the  strangers 
were  coming  in  their  direction.  They  remained  silent, 
so  as  not  to  give  them  a  clew  to  their  whereabouts, 
for  fear  of  having  to  divide  their  find  of  fruit  with 
them. 

They  heard  the  loud  voices  of  the  long,  black 
shaggy-haired  mondi,  the  largest  of  the  monkey  tribe. 
Soon  they  were  on  a  tree  near  them.  The  mondis 
were  furious  when  they  found  out  that  the  ndovas 
were  there  first,  for  they  knew  the  place,  and  had 
hoped  to  reach  it  before  any  other  troop  of  monkeys. 

The  mondis  uttered  their  war-cry.  It  is  indeed  a 
fearful  one,  —  one  that  can  be  heard  at  a  great  distance. 

This  was  answered  by  the  war-cry  of  the  ndovas, 
but  the  latter  was  faint  compared  with  that  of  the 
mondis.  The  hair  of  the  ndovas  stood  erect,  their 

40 


THE    NKEMAS,  OR    MONKEYS 

eyes  glared   at  their  enemies,  and   the   mondis'  eyes 
glared  at  the  ndovas. 

The  ndovas  were  more  numerous  than  the  mondis, 
but  these  were  more  heavily  built,  and  far  stronger. 
They  had  immense  canine  teeth,  which  could  go  deep 
into  the  flesh ;  and  though  the  ndovas  had  good  ones 
also,  they  were  not  so  large.  It  is  true  the  ndovas 
had  quicker  motions  and  were  far  more  agile. 


The  mondis  came  nearer  and  nearer.  Their  looks 
were  fiercer  and  fiercer.  The  mondis  defied  the 
ndovas,  and  the  ndovas  defied  the  mondis.  The 
noise  both  troops  made  was  fearful.  At  last  the  mon 
dis  leaped  upon  the  trees  where  the  ndovas  were,  and 
attacked  them.  The  ndovas  were  soon  routed  and 
had  to  flee,  leaving  the  fruit- bearing  tree  in  complete 
possession  of  the  long  black-haired  mondis. 

The  mondis  started  at  once  to  eat,  for  they  were 
very  hungry.  They  had  hardly  begun  their  meal, 
however,  the  ndovas  looking  at  them  from  a  tree  near 

41 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

by,  full  of  anger,  when  there  appeared  upon  the  scene 
two  nshiegos  (large  full-grown  apes),  who  also  knew 
these  trees  and  came  to  eat  their  fruit.  They  were 
very  angry  when  they  saw  the  mondis  were  there 
before  them,  for  they  too  had  come  from  a  long  dis 
tance.  They  gave  tremendous  yells,  and  the  fright 
ened  mondis  fled  in  great  haste,  for  the  nshiegos,  with 
their  long,  powerful  arms,  would  have  made  short  work 
of  them. 

"  Good  for  you  ! "  shouted  the  ndovas  to  the  nshie 
gos  when  they  saw  they  had  driven  away  the  mondis. 
The  nshiegos  ate  everything  in  sight. 

The  ndovas  travelled  every  day  toward  the  Land 
of  Plenty,  and  had  to  pass  through  a  part  of  the 
forest  where  nuts,  fruits,  and  berries  were  very  scarce, 
for  the  fruit  season  had  passed.  Other  troops  of 
monkeys,  large  flocks  of  toucans  (a  bird  with  a  huge 
bill),  and  other  large  birds  had  been  there  before  them. 

They  agreed  to  travel  in  squads,  so  that  they  could 
get  food  more  easily,  —  for  there  was  not  enough  for  all 
of  them  when  they  were  together,  —  and  then  to  meet  at 
a  certain  place  before  sunset,  the  leader  of  each  squad 
having  been  in  the  country  before,  on  their  way  to  the 
Land  of  Plenty.  They  had  a  hard  time  to  get  their 
living  on  that  day.  Fortunately  the  Land  of  Plenty 
was  not  far  off,  and  at  last  they  entered  its  borders. 


42 


CHAPTER  V 

ARRIVAL  OF  THE  NGOZOS  AND  NKEMAS  IN  THE 
LAND  OF  PLENTY 

FLOCKS  of  ngozos  and  troops  of  nkemas  began 
to  enter  the  Land  of  Plenty  one  after  another. 
Many  squirrels  had  also  made  their  appearance. 

Among  the  ngozos  that  had  arrived  was  the  flock 
which  had  had  a  fight  with  the  ndovas.  The  one 
whose  tail  had  been  plucked,  and  the  other  whose 
feathers  had  been  pulled  out  between  his  wings,  and 
who  had  bitten  off  the  monkey's  finger,  had  not  for 
gotten  the  horrid  ndovas.  Among  the  monkeys  was 
the  troop  of  ndovas  which  had  attacked  the  ngozos, 
and  with  them  the  one  that  had  had  his  finger  cut  off. 
He  had  cause  to  remember  the  horrid  ngozos. 

Day  after  day  the  monkeys  gradually  worked  their 
way  toward  the  guanioniens'  nest.  But  the  ngozos 
knew  of  the  nest,  and  when  one  day  they  recognized 
the  ndovas  that  had  attacked  them,  they  hoped  that 
the  guanioniens  would  kill  many  of  them. 

The  time  came  when,  to  the  great  joy  of  the  old 
birds,  three  little  guanioniens  broke  through  their 
shells.  They  looked  so  cunning  with  only  down  on 
their  bodies.  Their  parents  loved  them  dearly  and 
took  great  care  of  them. 

43 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

The  old  guanioniens  were  watching  the  fruits  and 
nuts  every  day  and  said,  "  These  are  growing  fast, 
they  will  soon  ripen,  and  we  must  expect  the  arrival  of 
the  monkeys  very  soon/* 

One  fine  morning,  just  at  daybreak,  the  guanioniens 
heard  for  the  first  time  the  jabbering  of  numerous 
troops  of  monkeys.  "  Do  you  hear  the  talk  of  the 
ndovas,  nkagos,  mpondais,  and  mondis?"  said  the  big 
guanionien  to  his  mate,  for  they  could  tell  the  species 
they  heard  talking. 

"  I  hear,"  she  replied. 

Both  gave  a  chuckle  of  pleasure,  for  now  they  knew 
that  they  would  have  food  in  plenty. 

The  old  birds  had  worked  very  hard  every  day  to 
get  food  for  their  young  ones,  for  they  were  getting 
bigger  and  bigger,  and  their  appetites  increased  in  pro 
portion  to  their  size.  And  Mrs.  Guanionien  said  to 
her  mate,  "  Now  with  plenty  of  food  our  little  ones 
will  grow  up  quickly  and  become  strong." 

The  guanioniens  left  their  tree,  and  soon  after  were 
soaring  high  in  the  air  above  a  troop  of  ndovas,  wait 
ing  for  their  opportunity  to  pounce  down  upon  them. 
But  somehow  the  ndovas  would  not  go  to  the  top  of 
the  trees,  but  kept  in  the  thick  middle  part.  The 
two  guanioniens  circled  near  each  other,  and  the 
big  one  said  to  his  mate :  "  These  ndovas  are  know 
ing  ones.  They  do  not  come  to  the  tops  of  the 
trees,  and  we  are  not  to  have  our  meal  as  soon  as 
we  expected." 

The  ndovas,  having  plucked  and  eaten  the  best 

44 


IN   THE    LAND    OF   PLENTY 

fruit,  moved  away  a  little  farther  on  and  soo'n  came 
to  two  other  trees  heavily  laden.  The  fruits  were  big 
and  ripe,  but  were  all  at  the  top,  those  on  the  lower 
branches  having  been  eaten  already  by  other  monkeys. 
The  ndovas  chuckled  with  pleasure  at  the  sight.  The 
temptation  was  so  great  that,  forgetting  to  be  prudent 
and  all  about  their  enemies,  the  guanioniens,  they 
ascended  the  branches  and  began  to  eat  in  silence. 

The  guanioniens  from  their  great  height  saw  the 
branches  of  the  trees,  upon  which  the  ndovas  were, 
moving,  and  they  came  down  and  soared  above  the 
place  ready  to  pounce  upon  them. 

The  ndovas  were  unaware  that  their  great  enemies, 
the  guanioniens,  were  so  near  them,  and  were  watching 
them  with  eyes  made  sharper  by  hunger.  They  were 
enjoying  their  feast  with  great  relish,  and  said  to  each 
other,  "  This  is  the  best  fruit  we  have  had  for  a  long 
time.  It  is  so  sweet  and  so  juicy.  What  luck  we 
have  ! "  "I  hope,"  said  one  of  them,  "  that  those 
horrid  mondis,  who  are  stronger  than  we  are,  will 
not  make  their  appearance,  for  they  will  drive  us 
away.  Let  us  make  haste  and  eat  all  we  can." 

The  guanioniens  delayed  their  attack,  for  they 
watched  their  opportunity  and  wanted  to  make  sure 
not  to  miss  their  prey.  The  ndovas  had  not  quite 
reached  the  very  top  of  the  trees,  and  the  birds  could 
not  swoop  down  upon  them  if  they  had  to  go  through 
the  branches,  for  not  only  would  the  branches  stop 
their  flight,  but  would  break  their  wings,  as  they 
struck  with  great  force  against  them. 

45 


THE   WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

The  two  guanioniens  soared  nearer  the  ndovas, 
watching  with  their  keen  eyes  the  trees  upon  which 
they  were  feeding.  Suddenly  they  saw  several  ndovas 
come  to  the  very  top  of  the  trees.  They  watched 
with  fierce  and  expectant  eyes,  swooped  down  with 
terrific  speed,  seized  two  of  the  biggest  ndovas  and 
rose  in  the  air,  each  with  his  talons  firmly  imbedded 
in  the  back  and  the  neck  of  his  victim,  so  that  he 
could  not  turn.  One  of  the  monkeys  was  the  chief 
of  the  troop  ;  the  other  was  the  one  whose  finger  had 
been  cut  off  by  the  ngozo.  The  eagles  flew  with  their 
prey  toward  their  tree,  and  the  first  thing  they  did 
was  to  tear  their  eyes  out,  and  then  kill  them  by 
disembowelling  them.  They  fed  first,  and  then, 
tearing  off  small  bits,  they  fed  their  young  ones 
with  them. 

It  happened  that  not  far  off  from  where  the  ndo 
vas  had  been  carried  away,  on  a  tall  tree,  was  the 
flock  of  ngozos  which  had  been  so  badly  treated  by 
those  same  ndovas.  They  were  feeding  on  nuts. 
Suddenly  they  heard  the  cries  of  pain  uttered  by  the 
ndovas  as  the  guanioniens  rose  in  the  air  with  them. 
Looking  up,  they  saw  the  ndova  whose  finger  had 
been  cut  off  by  one  of  them,  and  jabbered  with  joy. 
"  Good  for  you,  guanioniens,  good  for  you  !  kill  all 
the  monkeys  you  can  ; "  and  in  chorus,  "  We  hate 
the  monkeys,  we  hate  the  monkeys !  we  hate  the 
ndovas  more  than  the  rest,  for  they  have  done  us 
the  most  harm." 

The    troop    uttered    fearful    cries    of    dismay    and 


IN   THE    LAND    OF   PLENTY 

dread  when  they  saw  that  the  guanioniens  had  been 
among  them  and  had  carried  away  their  chief  and  one 
of  their  number.  They  fled  in  terror  to  some  safer 
place. 

In  the  evening  they  looked  at  one  another  with  deep 
sorrow  and  mourned  greatly  the  loss  of  their  chief  and 
of  one  of  their  comrades.  One  of  the  ndovas  was 
especially  sad,  for  it  was  his  beloved  mate  that  had 
been  carried  away  by  one  of  the  guanioniens. 

Still  monkeys,  parrots,  and  guanioniens  had  a  good 
time  in  the  Land  of  Plenty,  and  all  became  very  fat. 
But  the  guanioniens  made  great  havoc  among  the 
monkeys.  At  the  foot  of  their  trees  the  ground  was 
covered  with  a  great  number  of  skulls  and  bones  of 
those  they  had  eaten  up. 

The  time  came  at  last  when  the  fruits,  berries,  and 
nuts  became  scarce.  They  had  either  been  eaten  or 
had  fallen  to  decay  on  the  ground,  and  the  monkeys 
and  parrots  left  for  other  parts  of  the  forest. 

The  guanioniens  and  their  brood,  who  had  begun 
to  fly,  also  left.  The  old  ones  were  going  to  a  partly 
open  country  to  teach  their  young  how  to  capture 
prey,  and  then  the  goats  and  gazelles  would  have  a 
bad  time. 

The  Land  of  Plenty  became  deserted  until  the  fol 
lowing  year,  when  it  would  become  again  full  of  life. 
After  their  departure  the  parrots  mated,  built  their 
nests  in  the  hollows  of  the  trees,  and  did  not  come  to 
gether  again  into  flocks  until  their  young  began  to  fly. 
A  few  flocks  came  at  first  to  the  old  meeting-place ; 

47 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT   FOREST 

the  same  number  of  flocks  that  came  in  the  evening 
went  off  in  the  morning,  with  the  same  chief.  At  first 
the  flocks  and  their  number  of  ngozos  could  be  easily 
counted  ;  but  in  a  few  days  they  became  so  numerous 
that  it  was  impossible  to  number  them. 


CHAPTER  VI 

THE    NIGHT    ANIMALS 

STRANGE  as  it  may  appear,  in  the  night  the 
great  forest  is  more  alive  with  animals  than 
during  the  day.  These  night  prowlers  can  only  see 
well  when  it  is  dark,  and  the  darker  it  is  the  better 
they  can  see.  They  generally  have  short  legs  and 
walk  so  lightly  that  their  footsteps  cannot  be  heard 
when  they  go  through  the  jungle. 

They  are  very  sly  and  most  dangerous  to  other 
creatures.  Most  of  them  feed  on  animals  that  have 
warm  blood,  for  they  love  blood,  which  is  to  them  as 
water.  They  sleep  during  the  day,  which  is  their 
night,  and  roam  about  during  the  darkest  part  of  the 
night,  which  is  their  day.  It  is  at  that  time  that  they 
seek  for  prey,  so  they  are  much  dreaded  by  the 
animals  that  sleep  during  the  night. 

Their  abodes  are  in  the  deep  hollows  of  trees,  in 
holes  or  gloomy  recesses  under  their  roots,  in  caverns, 
in  crevasses  found  among  the  rocks,  in  burrows  under 
fallen  trees,  and  where  fallen  limbs  are  piled  upon 
each  other.  In  a  word,  they  like  the  places  where 
the  light  cannot  penetrate,  for  the  light  blinds  them. 
They  cannot  bear  the  bright  sunshine. 
4  49 


THE   WORLD   OF   THE   GREAT   FOREST 

These  prowlers  do  not  come  out  of  their  abodes  to 
attack  their  prey  until  the  night  is  far  advanced,  for 
then  the  sleep  of  the  day  animals  is  heaviest,  and  they 
do  not  easily  awaken  and  scent  their  enemies.  One 
of  the  gifts  of  these  night  creatures  is  that  they  know 
the  hours  of  the  night  just  as  well  as  if  they  had 
watches  or  clocks,  and  they  seldom  emerge  from 
their  abodes  for  their  raids  and  depredations  before 
midnight,  and  generally  return  to  their  dens  towards 
four  o'clock  in  the  morning.  If  they  go  out  earlier, 
or  return  later,  it  is  because  hunger  obliges  them 
to  do  so. 

Almost  invariably  they  make  their  raids  singly,  so 
that  the  pair  have  more  chance  to  capture  prey.  It  is 
wonderful  how  these  night  creatures  know  their  way. 
They  see  so  well  that  they  go  through  the  thick 
jungle  as  if  the  sun  were  shining,  and  through  the 
intense  darkness,  they  note  every  sapling,  every 
branch,  every  thorny  bush,  every  leaf,  every  ant,  and, 
no  matter  how  far  they  go,  they  know  their  way  back 
to  their  lairs. 

This  gift  of  theirs  is  not  possessed  by  human 
beings,  who  have  to  make  special  marks,  such  as 
breaking  young  branches  of  trees,  marking  them  back, 
or  putting  heaps  of  leaves,  or  sticking  sticks  into  the 
ground  to  find  their  way  back. 

There  are  only  a  few  night  winged  creatures,  such 
as  owls,  vampires,  bats,  flying  squirrels,  and  a  few 
birds ;  but  there  are  many  night  snakes. 


CHAPTER   VII 

THE    NJEGO,    OR     LEOPARD 

THE  njego,  or  leopard,  is  the  most  dreaded  of  all 
the  night  prowlers  by  all  the  animals  of  the 
great  forest. 

One  night  a  njego,  looking  at  his  beautiful  spotted 
skin,  his  long  tail  beating  his  flanks,  exclaimed  to  him 
self:  "  Many  creatures  of  the  great  forest  hate  and 
fear  me,  for  I  love  blood.  I  thrive  and  live  chiefly 
on  kambis  [antelopes]  and  ncheris  [gazelles].  I  have 
no  friends.  All  think  I  am  not  to  be  trusted. 

"  I  am  the  biggest  of  the  night  prowlers.  I  have  to 
be  cunning  in  seeking  my  prey.  No  large  creature 
can  walk  in  the  forest  and  through  the  underbrush 
with  a  lighter  step  than  mine,  and  if  I  make  a  slight 
rustling  going  through  the  thicket  of  the  jungle,  the 
beasts  of  the  forest  think  the  wind  is  the  cause  of  it. 

"  I  can  also  see  in  the  daytime,  but  the  light  makes 
me  wink.  I  can  spring  farther  than  any  animal. 
This  is  one  of  the  gifts  I  possess,  otherwise  I  could 
not  get  my  living.  How  I  love  the  flesh  of  the 
kambis  and  of  the  ncheris !  "  As  he  thought  of  them 
his  eyes  glittered  and  shone  like  fire,  and  he  licked 
his  chops. 


THE   WORLD    OF    THE   GREAT   FOREST 

"  When  animals  see  me  close  to  them,  my  eyes 
often  paralyze  them,  and  they  cannot  run  away." 
Then  he  grinned  as  njegos  do,  and  added,  "  No  won 
der  that  the  animals  of  the  forest  dread  the  njego,  for 
often  he  makes  a  prodigious  leap,  falling  in  the  midst 
of  them  when  they  are  not  aware  of  his  presence,  and 
then  he  gloats  over  the  victim  he  has  chosen." 

Suddenly  the  njego  heard  the  trumpeting  of  a 
njokoo  (elephant),  and  the  terrible  and  appalling  roar 
of  a  ngina  (gorilla),  and  he  listened  a  while,  and  said, 
"  These  creatures  I  do  not  attack." 

Soon  after  he  met  his  mate  near  their  lair,  and  they 
went  inside,  for  the  day  was  coming,  and  they  were 
soon  asleep.  The  njegos  have  a  peculiar,  silent  way 
of  communicating  with  each  other  by  looks,  move 
ments  of  the  tail,  and  other  signs  only  known  to  them. 
So  in  this  way  after  they  had  slept  all  day  long  and 
well  into  the  next  night  the  big  njego  said  to  his  mate 
as  they  were  lying  in  their  lair :  "  Dear,  the  night  is 
far  advanced ;  it  is  time  for  us  to  go  out  in  search  of 
prey,  and  the  day  animals  will  be  in  their  heaviest 
sleep  and  will  not  hear  or  scent  us." 

It  was  then  about  midnight.  After  coming  out  of 
their  lair,  they  rejoiced  when  they  saw  that  the  night 
was  so  dark.  They  said  to  each  other,  "  How  well 
we  shall  see  to-night ! "  Then  they  looked  at  each 
other  with  great  affection,  the  big  njego  licking  the  skin 
of  his  mate  to  show  her  how  much  he  loved  her. 

They  said  good-by  to  each  other,  for  njegos,  like 
all  night  prowlers,  as  already  said,  go  in  search  of 


THE    NJEGO,  OR    LEOPARD 

prey  by  themselves,  and  they  wished  each  other  good 
luck.  "  I  hope,  dear/'  said  the  big  njego  to  his  mate, 
"  that  you  will  find  a  kambi  [antelope]  to-night."  "  I 
hope  so,"  she  replied,  "and  I  wish  you  the  same." 

After  this  they  parted,  each  going  his  own  way, 
walking  as  noiselessly  as  still  air,  their  lithe  bodies 
passing  through  the  jungle  with  a  suppleness  that  was 
wonderful.  The  glow  of  their  eyes  was  sometimes 
such  that  they  looked  like  two  bright  burning  pieces 
of  charcoal. 


The  big  njego,  as  he  walked  along,  would  stop  now 
and  then  to  scent  better  or  to  hear  if  some  prey  was 
moving  in  the  forest.  But  in  spite  of  all  his  cunning, 
power  of  scent,  and  good  sight,  he  had  bad  luck,  and 
did  not  get  any  prey.  Toward  four  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  the  two  njegos  thought  it  was  about  time  to 
return  home. 

When  the  big  njego  came  to  his  lair,  his  mate  had 
not  yet  arrived,  and  he  waited  for  her  outside.  Soon 
after,  he  scented  her,  and  then  he  paced  to  and  fro,  his 
long  tail  beating  his  flanks,  and  his  eyes  glaring  like 
fire  from  excitement  and  pleasure  at  the  prospect  of 
her  coming. 

53 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE   GREAT   FOREST 

Soon  she  made  her  appearance,  and  he  received  her 
with  great  delight.  He  looked  at  her  and  said  :  "  I 
see  by  your  hollow  flanks,  dear,  that  you  have  had 
nothing  to  eat  to  night." 

"  You  are  right,"  she  replied,  "  my  stomach  is 
empty  ;  I  am  starving." 

Then,  looking  at  him,  she  said :  u  I  see  also  by 
your  flanks  that  you  did  not  kill  anything  to-night. 
You  have  had  no  flesh  to  eat,  no  blood  to  drink." 

"  You  are  right,"  he  replied.  "  I  also  am  starving. 
Well,  we  have  to  work  hard  for  our  living.  It  is 
not  every  day  that  we  get  prey."  They  spoke  of 
the  animals  they  had  met  that  night.  "  I  saw  a  herd 
of  njokoos,"  said  the  big  njego.  "  I  thought  it  was 
wiser  to  let  them  alone.  I  might  have  sprung  upon 
one  and  made  fast  to  his  trunk  and  lain  between  his 
tusks,  but  he  would  have  run  through  the  forest 
and  dashed  his  head  against  the  trunk  of  a  tree  and 
killed  me. 

"  A  little  after,  I  scented  a  kambi ;  but  the  creature 
scented  me  also,  and,  though  I  followed  her  with  all 
the  cunning  I  possess,  she  succeeded  in  crossing  and 
swimming  to  the  other  side  of  a  large  stream.  I  had 
to  give  up  the  pursuit,  for  unfortunately  we  njegos 
are  afraid  of  crossing  rivers,  as  we  do  not  swim." 

They  entered  their  lair.  Then  they  went  to  sleep  ; 
but  they  were  restless,  for  they  were  hungry.  Every 
time  they  awoke,  each  said,  "  I  wish  night  would 
come."  It  came  at  last.  They  awoke,  gave  several 
yawns,  and  opened  their  mouths,  showing  their  strong, 

54 


THE    NJEGO,  OR    LEOPARD 

sharp  teeth.  Their  terrible  retractile  claws  like  those 
of  a  cat  moved  as  if  ready  to  sink  deeply  into  the 
body  of  some  animal.  "  If  I  catch  a  kambi  to-night, 
what  a  feast  I  shall  have  ! "  thought  each  njego  at  the 
same  time;  and  at  the  thought  of  blood  both  licked 
their  chops  with  their  prickly  tongues. 


They  left  their  lair  and  parted,  as  was  their  custom 
both  prowling  in  the  dark,  gloomy,  and  silent  forest, 
for  all  the  birds  were  asleep  as  well  as  the  day  animals. 

Afar  off  there  were  two  kambis  together,  when 
suddenly  one  said  to  the  other :  "  We  are  in  danger. 
I  scent  a  njego.  Let  us  flee,  for  the  wicked  creature 
is  coming  our  way.  Let  us  hasten.  Yes,  the  scent 
is  becoming  stronger  and  stronger  every  moment/' 
They  fled  in  the  opposite  direction  from  the  scent, 

55 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT   FOREST 

and  after  a  long  run  came  to  a  large  river  and  swam 
across.  Then  they  felt  safe,  as  the  broad  stream  was 
between  them  and  the  njego ;  for  kambis  know  that 
the  njegos  never  swim  across  a  river. 

After  a  while  the  njego  scented  the  two  kambis. 
He  followed  the  scent  until  he  came  to  the  place 
where  they  had  lain  down.  Here  it  was  quite  strong. 
He  thought  they  were  very  near,  and  crouched  on 
the  ground,  his  belly  touching  it.  Never  had  he 
been  more  wary,  though  he  was  intensely  excited 
at  the  prospect  of  a  good  meal,  and  his  eyes  glistened 
as  if  they  were  fires. 

Slowly  he  advanced,  but  his  sharp  eyes  saw  no 
kambis.  He  followed  the  scent,  walking  with  great 
rapidity,  and  was  gaining  upon  them  very  fast.  At 
last  the  scent  grew  very  strong,  and  he  made  sure  he 
was  to  have  a  meal.  Soon  he  came  to  a  river  where 
he  saw  their  footprints  on  the  bank.  He  gave  a  fear 
ful  growl  of  disappointment  and  rage  when  he  found 
the  water  of  the  wide  stream  between  him  and  his 
prey.  He  knew  they  were  beyond  his  reach.  Then 
he  walked  along  the  banks  of  the  river,  trying  to 
find  a  place  where  two  trees  opposite  each  other  had 
branches  spreading  far  over  the  river,  so  that  after 
climbing  he  could  make  a  prodigious  bound  from  one 
to  the  other,  and  thus  span  the  chasm  that  separated 
him  from  the  two  kambis. 

As  he  was  looking  for  such  a  place,  he  said  to  him 
self:  "  I  will  make  the  greatest  leap  I  ever  made,  for 
I  must  kill  one  of  those  kambis.  I  am  so  hungry. 


THE   NJEGO,  OR   LEOPARD 

I  have  had  no  food  for  three  days.  How  hard  I 
have  to  work  for  my  living  ! " 

At  last  he  saw  two  such  trees,  and  grinned  with 
joy.  He  rose  on  his  hind  legs  and  imbedded  his 
terrible  claws  in  the  bark,  and  ascended  one  of  the 
trees  just  like  a  cat.  When  he  reached  its  longest 
transverse  thick  branch,  he  walked  over  it,  and  looked 
across  to  the  other  side.  But,  to  his  disappointment 
and  dismay,  he  saw  that  the  gap  between  the  trees 
was  so  great  that  he  could  not  leap  over  the  chasm. 

He  looked  down  with  dread  at  the  swift  deep 
water  of  the  stream  under  him,  and  exclaimed  :  "  I  can 
never  leap  over  this  big  gap,  for  if  I  try  I  shall  surely 
fall  into  the  stream.  I  have  a  horror  of  falling  into 
the  water.  This  has  never  happened  to  me  in  my 
life."  But  before  coming  down  from  the  tree  he 
uttered  another  growl  of  rage,  when  he  saw  that  he 
could  not  follow  the  kambis.  His  roar  was  so  loud 
that  he  awoke  the  day  creatures  that  were  asleep  in  the 
neighborhood,  and  they  fled  in  every  direction. 

The  njego  had  travelled  a  very  long  way  from 
his  lair,  pursuing  the  kambis,  and  it  was  time  for  him 
to  go  back  to  meet  his  mate.  As  he  walked,  he  was 
very  despondent  and  said  :  "  Again  another  day  with 
out  a  meal.  But  luck  may  come  before  I  reach 
my  lair.  It  often  happens  that  at  the  last  moment 
I  find  prey." 

True  enough,  as  he  was  going  along  he  suddenly 
scented  a  kambi.  His  eyes  once  more  flashed  fire. 
He  hurried  on.  Nearer  and  nearer  he  came  toward 

57 


THE    WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT    FOREST 

his  prey,  who  was  nipping  leaves,  unaware  that  her 
life  was  in  such  danger,  for  the  night  breeze  was 
blowing  from  her  direction  in  that  of  the  njego,  so 
that  she  could  not  scent  him. 

At  last  the  njego,  as  sly  as  a  snake,  came  within 
sight  of  the  kambi.  At  that  moment  the  kambi  for 
the  first  time  scented  danger  and  fled  in  terror,  for 
it  was  the  scent  of  the  njego,  her  most  dreaded 
enemy.  The  njego,  seeing  his  prey  running  away, 


made  a  tremendous  bound.  He  missed,  and  the 
kambi  fled  as  fast  as  her  legs  could  carry  her;  but 
he  made  spring  after  spring,  and  each  leap  brought 
him  nearer  and  nearer  his  quarry.  He  gave  growls 
of  rage  every  time  he  missed  his  prey,  fearing  that 
it  would  escape  him. 

The  poor  kambi  was  so  terrified  that  she  ran  in 
a  wild,  erratic  way,  and  became  paralyzed  with  fear. 
At  last  the  njego,  with  a  prodigious  bound,  landed 
on  her  neck.  His  teeth  were  immediately  imbedded 
in  the  flesh  of  the  panting  creature,  and  his  claws 

58 


THE   NJEGO,  OR   LEOPARD 

sank  deep  into  her  body.  The  struggle  was  soon 
over.  The  njego  made  a  great  feast  on  the  warm 
body  of  his  victim. 

While  eating,  the  njego  was  silent  for  fear  of  attract 
ing  other  njegos  toward  his  prey.  It  was  terrible  to 
see  his  glaring,  treacherous-looking  eyes  while  he  was 
feasting.  If  another  njego  had  come  near,  he  would 
have  been  attacked  with  great  fierceness.  After  eat 
ing  until  he  could  eat  no  more,  he  continued  his  way 
toward  his  lair,  too  surfeited  to  attack  another  kambi, 
even  if  he  had  met  one  on  his  way. 

His  mate  was  waiting  for  him  before  their  lair. 
After  he  arrived,  she  looked  at  him,  and  said :  "  Dear, 
I  see  blood  around  your  mouth  and  on  your  paws. 
This  is  the  blood  of  a  kambi.  Your  flanks  are  also  so 
swollen  that  your  stomach  must  be  filled  with  flesh." 

"Yes,"  he  replied,  "I  have  been  lucky.  I  came 
upon  a  kambi ;  you  are  right." 

"  I  have  also  been  fortunate,"  she  said.  "  I  had  a 
ncheri  for  my  meal,  but,  as  you  know,  a  ncheri  is 
small  compared  with  a  kambi.  So  I  had  only  a  good 
meal  and  nothing  to  spare.  But  I  am  thankful  for 
this,  for  I  am  not  hungry  any  more." 

The  two  njegos  were  soon  fast  asleep,  and  did  not 
wake  during  the  day. 

After  the  njego  had  left  the  remains  of  the  kambi, 
a  pack  of  hyenas  came  just  in  time,  before  the  ants 
arrived  to  eat  the  rest,  and  they  feasted  on  what  the 
Jeopard  had  left  of  the  kambi. 


59 


CHAPTER  VIII 

BIRTH    OF    THREE    LITTLE    NJEGOS 

ONE  day,  three  tiny  little  njegos  were  born,  and 
the  old  ones  were  delighted. 

They  watched  over  their  little  ones  with  great  care, 
and  when  Mamma  Njego  would  go  in  search  of  prey, 
Papa  Njego  remained  behind  to  take  care  of  the  little 
ones.  Now  and  then  he  had  a  hard  time,  for  they 
cried  when  they  wanted  Mamma  Njego  to  nurse  them. 
But  mamma  wanted  an  outing  sometimes,  and  had  to 
go  after  prey. 

"  What  made  you  so  late  ?  "  Papa  Njego  would 
sometimes  say  when  his  mate  returned. 

"  If  I  am  late,"  she  would  reply,  "  it  is  because  I 
have  had  a  hard  time  to  find  prey,"  or,  "  Well,  dear,  I 
am  famished ;  I  found  nothing." 

When  Papa  Njego  went  out  and  was  successful,  he 
would  bring  food  to  his  mate,  for  she  had  to  be  nearly 
all  the  time  with  their  dear  little  ones. 

So  the  old  leopards  were  kept  busy.  After  a  while 
they  would  leave  the  little  njegos  alone,  saying,  "We 
can  leave  them  now,  for  they  are  still  afraid  to  go  out 
of  our  lair  when  we  are  not  with  them." 

The  little  njegos  grew  fast,  feeding  only  from  the 
breast  of  their  mother,  and  began  to  roam  around  their 

60 


THREE    LITTLE    NJEGOS   BORN 

lair.  One  day,  as  their  parents  were  looking  at  them 
playing  about,  the  mother  said  to  her  mate :  "  Look 
how  big  our  little  ones  are !  How  much  they  have 
grown  lately  !  We  must  soon  give  them  a  taste  of 
blood." 

Two  or  three  nights  afterward  both  were  success 
ful,  and  returned  each  with  a  gazelle,  and  almost  at  the 
same  time. 


They  tore  the  gazelles  to  pieces,  and  called  their 
little  ones  out,  and  put  before  them  the  pieces  they 
had  torn  off.  The  little  njegos  looked  at  them  first, 
and  as  if  they  did  not  seem  to  care,  for  they  did  not 
know  what  blood  was,  or  raw  flesh.  They  came  and 
smelt  the  meat,  but  did  not  lick  it,  and  went  back  to 
be  nursed  by  their  mamma. 

The  next  day  the  njegos  went  after  prey  and  were 
again  successful.  Again  they  tore  off  pieces  of  the 

61 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT    FOREST 

flesh  and  put  them  before  the  little  ones.  This  time 
they  smelled  the  meat  and  licked  it  two  or  three 
times,  to  the  great  joy  of  the  old  ones.  The  third 
time  meat  was  put  before  them,  they  licked  the  meat 
until  no  vestige  of  blood  was  left  on  it. 

When  their  parents  saw  this,  they  were  delighted 
and  said :  "  Our  little  ones  are  doing  well.  They 
now  enjoy  the  taste  of  blood.  They  are  going  to  be 
true  njegos." 

The  little  njegos,  who  had  now  licked  blood, 
wanted  more,  and  were  very  restless  and  cried  for  it, 
though  they  could  not  yet  talk  the  njego  language,  for 
they  were  too  young.  The  next  day  Papa  Njego  was 
luckier,  and  brought  a  young  kambi  to  their  lair.  This 
time  the  eyes  of  the  little  njegos  fairly  glared  when 
they  saw  the  bloody  pieces  of  meat,  and  they  pre 
cipitated  themselves  upon  them  and  licked  off  the 
blood  with  great  gusto,  for  they  loved  blood  more 
every  time  they  tasted  it,  to  the  great  delight  of  the 
old  njegos. 

Soon  after,  as  their  teeth  grew,  they  began  not  only 
to  lick  the  blood,  but  to  eat  the  meat.  One  day  the 
big  njego  said  to  his  mate :  "  Our  little  ones  are  get 
ting  big,  and  soon  we  shall  have  to  work  harder  and 
harder  to  feed  them,  for  their  appetites  increase  more 
and  more  as  they  grow  larger  and  larger."  Then  he 
rubbed  his  head  against  her  neck  to  show  how  much 
he  loved  her. 

The  time  arrived  when  the  little  njegos  were  able  to 
follow  their  mother,  and  as  they  grew  older  they  un- 

62 


THREE    LITTLE   NJEGOS    BORN 

derstood  every  day,  more  and  more,  the  ways  of  the 
njegos. 

One  day,  one  of  the  little  njegos  pounced  upon  a 
ncheri  (gazelle),  and  when  his  little  brother  and  sister 
came  to  enjoy  the  prey  with  him,  he  growled  fiercely, 
for  he  did  not  want  them  to  have  any  of  it. 

But  Mamma  Njego  made  peace  among  them,  tore 
the  poor  ncheri  into  pieces,  and  all  three  had  a  peace 
ful  meal,  while  she  was  looking  on.  After  they  were 
satisfied,  she  ate  the  rest,  and  then,  as  the  day  was  soon 
to  dawn,  she  returned  to  her  lair  with  the  little  ones. 

Her  mate  was  waiting  for  her.  She  said  to  him : 
"  One  of  the  little  ones  has  killed  a  ncheri.  Soon 
they  will  be  able  to  take  care  of  themselves.  Then 
we  shall  not  have  to  work  so  hard.  Look  at  them, 
and  at  their  little  muzzles  and  paws,  red  with  blood." 

Time  went  on,  and  the  little  njegos  had  grown  big, 
and  were  able  to  hunt  for  themselves,  and  finally  left 
their  parents.  By  this  time  almost  all  the  animals  for 
a  long  distance  round  the  land  of  njegos  had  fled  away 
to  escape  the  fate  of  those  who  had  been  eaten  up. 
The  kambis,  the  ncheris,  and  other  animals  would  say 
to  their  kindred, "  The  njegos  have  come  to  our  land ; 
let  us  migrate  to  some  other  parts  of  the  great  forest." 

So  the  old  njegos  starved.  Night  after  night  they 
had  no  prey.  The  big  one  said  to  his  mate,  "  We 
must  leave  this  country  if  we  do  not  wish  to  die 
of  hunger." 

"  Yes,  let  us  leave  this  horrid  country,"  she  replied. 
"  See  how  thin  we  have  become  for  want  of  food." 

63 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE   GREAT    FOREST 

And  they  looked  at  each  other  and  saw  their  ribs 
showing  through  their  beautiful  spotted  skins. 

They  departed,  but,  as  the  forest  was  depopulated 
for  miles  around,  they  got  a  very  scanty  subsistence, 
just  enough  to  sustain  life. 

They  came,  indeed,  to  a  worse  country  still,  for  the 
formidable  bashikouay  ants  had  been  in  the  land  a  few 
days  before  in  countless  millions,  and  their  vast  army 
had  attacked  all  the  living  creatures  that  came  in  their 
way,  and  devoured  many,  and  all  the  rest  had  fled  for 
their  lives,  and  no  creature  walking  or  crawling  on  earth 
was  to  be  seen.  Hard  indeed  was  the  lot  of  the  two 
njegos.  Death  by  starvation  stared  them  in  the  face. 

In  that  plight,  Mrs.  Njego  said  to  her  mate :  "  Now 
that  we  have  raised  our  young,  let  us  separate  for 
good,  according  to  the  custom  of  our  kind.  When 
we  are  far  apart,  we  shall  get  food  more  easily." 

They  parted  with  great  friendliness  and  said,  "  Per 
haps  in  the  course  of  our  lives  we  shall  meet  again." 
They  went  in  opposite  directions  and  lived  alone, 
prowling  every  night  in  search  of  prey,  and  resting 
often  during  the  day  on  branches  of  trees. 


64 


CHAPTER  IX 

THE    BIG    NJEGO    BECOMES    A    MAN-EATER 

NOW  we  will  only  follow  the  big  njego,  having 
lost  track  of  his  mate.  He  was  in  a  pitiful 
state,  and  mad  with  starvation.  It  happened  one 
day  that  he  saw  a  spring  where  human  beings  came 
every  day  to  get  water.  He  scented  their  footprints, 
and  his  appetite  then  seemed  to  increase  tenfold.  He 
followed  the  scent,  which  led  him  to  their  village,  and 
as  he  came  near  the  scent  seemed  to  him  the  most 
delicious  and  appetizing  aroma  he  had  ever  smelled. 

"  I  have  never  dared,"  said  he,  "  to  attack  human 
beings  before.  I  have  always  kept  shy  of  them.  But 
I  am  famished,  and  the  country  contains  no  prey,  so 
that  I  shall  die  of  starvation  unless  I  eat  one  of  them. 
So  I  must  not  be  afraid." 

The  village  was  fenced,  and  that  first  night  he  did 
not  dare  to  leap  over  the  fence,  for  he  was  timid  in 
spite  of  what  he  had  said  to  himself.  Toward  morn 
ing  he  hid  in  a  thick  part  of  the  jungle  close  by  the 
spring,  and  went  to  sleep  on  a  cross  branch  of  a  tree. 
He  was  so  hungry  that  after  sunset  he  descended  the 
tree,  and  lay  in  wait  near  the  path  leading  to  the 
spring,  waiting  for  a  human  being  to  come.  It  was 
5  65 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT   FOREST 

almost  dark,  and  all  the  people  had  come  to  the 
spring  to  get  water  but  one. 

The  njego's  quick  ear  soon  heard  footsteps  coming, 
and  presently  he  saw  a  woman  with  a  big  water  jar  on 
her  head  walking  in  the  path  toward  the  spring.  He 
watched  her.  While  she  was  bending  over  the  water, 
filling  her  jug,  he  made  a  tremendous  leap  and  landed 
on  her  back,  fastening  his  claws  in  her  body,  at  the 
same  time  that  his  big  jaws  with  their  terrible  teeth 
sank  into  her  back. 

The  poor  woman  was  so  paralyzed  by  fear  that  she 
did  not  utter  a  single  cry.  The  leopard  carried  her 
into  the  jungle  and  devoured  her.  The  flesh  of  the 
woman  tasted  so  good,  and  the  blood  he  licked  was  so 
sweet,  that  the  njego  thought  it  was  better  than  all  the 
kambis  or  anything  else  he  had  ever  eaten  in  his 
life  before,  and  he  said  to  himself:  "  Why  did  I  not 
dare  to  kill  human  beings  before !  They  are  harm 
less.  This  one  did  not  fight.  What  a  fool  I  have 
been ! " 

From  that  day  the  big  njego  was  a  man-eater. 
Soon  after,  a  man  who  had  gone  into  the  forest  for  wild 
honey  happened  to  pass  near  where  the  njego  was, 
and  he  also  was  attacked  and  devoured.  The  njego 
became  the  terror  of  the  people  of  that  country. 

The  human  beings,  missing  their  fellows,  went  in 
search  of  them,  and  saw  in  one  place  the  big  foot 
prints  of  the  njego,  and  blood  in  another,  and  knew 
that  a  njego  had  turned  into  a  "  man-eater,"  and  was 
in  the  neighborhood,  and  had  carried  off  their  missing 

66 


"  He  watched  her" 


THE   BIG   NJEGO   A    MAN-EATER 

ones.  There  was  great  sorrow  among  the  villagers  at 
this  discovery,  for  they  thought  more  of  them  would 
be  slain  and  devoured. 

From  that  time  on  they  never  went  alone  into  the 
forest  or  to  the  spring,  and  were  always  armed  with 
spears  or  poisonous  arrows.  At  night  they  kept 
many  fires  burning  in  the  street,  and  consoled  them 
selves  by  saying,  "  No  matter  how  hungry  a  njego 
may  be,  he  is  afraid  of  fire."  They  also  danced  all 
night  and  beat  their  tom-toms. 

During  that  time  the  njego  kept  far  out  of  the  way 
in  the  jungle.  But  he  thought  all  the  time  of  the 
flesh  of  the  human  beings  he  had  eaten,  and  said, 
"  I  will  watch  my  opportunity." 

The  villagers,  after  a  while,  thought  the  man-eater 
had  been  scared  away  and  had  left  the  country,  and 
that  he  would  never  come  back.  So  they  stopped 
dancing  every  night,  and  went  to  sleep  without  any 
fear  of  the  njego. 

But,  in  the  course  of  time,  the  njego  returned.  One 
night  he  walked  toward  the  village,  and,  coming  to 
the  fence,  turned  around  it,  hoping  to  see  some  open 
ings  through  which  he  could  get.  But  he  saw  none. 
Then  he  leaped  over  the  palings,  falling  so  lightly  that 
no  one  heard  him.  Noiselessly  he  passed  through 
the  dark  street,  his  eyes  looking  everywhere,  in  search 
of  prey.  He  listened  to  everything,  and  was  very 
cautious  and  somewhat  timid,  for  he  had  never  en 
tered  a  village  of  human  beings  before. 

He  scented  human  beings  in  every  house ;  but  the 

67 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT    FOREST 

houses  had  doors,  and  these  were  all  closed.  The 
village  was  composed  of  a  single  street  with  houses  on 
both  sides.  So  he  went  in  the  rear  of  the  houses  and 
walked  by  them,  but  saw  no  openings  to  get  in. 

Finally  he  came  to  a  goat-house  ;  but  there  was  no 
way  for  him  to  enter,  for  the  house  had  been  espe 
cially  built  to  protect  the  goats  against  njegos.  So,  after 
walking  several  times  around  it,  and  saying  to  himself, 
"  How  I  like  goats  ! "  he  retreated,  and  soon  after  he 
leaped  over  the  fence  and  went  back  into  the  jungle, 
and  slept  on  a  huge  branch  of  a  tree. 

But  he  was  thinking  all  the  time  of  the  flesh  of  the 
human  beings  he  had  eaten,  and  the  following  night  he 
went  again  to  the  village  and  examined  carefully  every 
spot ;  but  he  was  still  very  timid,  for  everything  was 
yet  very  strange  to  him.  He  lingered  much  longer 
than  on  the  first  night,  and  walked  several  times  the 
length  of  the  street  and  back  of  the  houses,  scenting 
human  beings  everywhere,  which  gave  him  a  tremen 
dous  appetite. 

He  remained  uncertain  what  to  do  ;  but  he  had 
come  to  the  conclusion  that  the  roofs  were  the  weak 
est  parts  of  the  houses.  However,  that  night  again  he 
leaped  back  over  the  fence,  went  into  the  jungle,  and 
slept  on  the  same  tree  that  he  had  slept  on  since  he 
had  first  come  to  the  village. 

The  next  night  there  was  a  great  thunderstorm, 
with  terrible  lightning,  and  the  rain  fell  in  torrents. 
The  njego  said  :  "  This  is  good  weather  for  me.  I 
will  enter  the  village  of  the  human  beings,  and  carry 

68 


THE   BIG   NJEGO   A    MAN-EATER 

away  one  of  them  for  a  meal/'  He  waited  as  usual 
until  the  night  was  somewhat  advanced,  and  then 
thought  it  was  time  for  him  to  leave  his  place.  He 
came  down  the  tree  and  directed  his  steps  toward  the 
village. 

When  he  came  in  sight  of  the  fence,  he  listened, 
but  could  only  hear  the  heavy  rain  falling  on  the  roofs 
of  the  houses.  He  heard  no  voices  of  the  human 
beings,  but  his  scent  told  him  that  many  were  there. 

Then  he  said  to  himself:  "They  are  sleeping, just 
as  the  men  of  the  woods,  the  monkeys,  and  other  ani 
mals  of  the  forest  do,  during  the  night,  and  now  is  the 
time  when  I  can  pounce  upon  them."  The  scent  of 
human  beings  gave  him  courage,  for  he  was  famished 
and  had  become  desperately  ferocious  from  hunger. 
He  walked  slowly  and  silently  in  the  middle  of  the 
street,  looking  here  and  there,  his  eyes  shining  like 
fire.  At  last  he  stopped  before  a  house  in  which  peo 
ple  were  asleep,  and  thought  for  a  while.  Then,  as 
quick  as  a  swooping  guanionien,  he  made  a  tremendous 
bound,  landed  in  the  middle  of  the  palm-thatched  roof, 
plunged  through  it  and  seized  one  of  the  inmates  (a 
young  girl),  and  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye  he  had 
sprung  back  through  the  hole  he  had  made  going  into 
the  house,  with  his  prey  in  his  mouth,  made  another 
spring,  which  landed  him  outside  of  the  fence,  and 
carried  off  his  victim  into  the  forest. 

The  njego  had  been  so  quick  that  the  Inmates  of 
the  house  had  hardly  time  to  realize  the  great  mis 
fortune  that  had  happened  to  them.  They  saw  blood 

69 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT    FOREST 

and  the  hole  through  the  roof.  Then  they  knew  that 
the  man-eater  had  been  there  and  had  carried  off  one 
of  their  people. 

At  their  cries  of  anguish,  the  whole  village  awoke, 
and  all  the  people  knew  that  the  man-eater  had  come 
back,  and  swore  that  they  would  never  rest  and  be 
happy  again  until  they  had  trapped  him.  They 
made  a  trap  in  the  forest,  in  the  shape  of  a  funnel, 
planting  long  poles  in  the  ground,  close  together,  and 
making  them  fast.  The  structure  was  much  narrower 
toward  the  end,  so  that  it  was  impossible  for  the 
leopard  to  turn  back.  At  the  end  was  a  sort  of  cage. 
The  top  of  the  trap  was  also  closed  with  poles  made 
very  secure,  so  that  when  he  went  in  he  could  not 
possibly  escape. 

When  the  trap  was  finished,  they  brought  a  goat 
and  put  him  in  the  cage.  During  the  night  the  goat, 
which  was  much  frightened,  cried  incessantly.  The 
man-eater  heard  him,  and  said,  "  To-night  I  will  make 
a  meal  of  that  goat." 

When  the  night  was  sufficiently  advanced,  he  de 
scended  the  tree  upon  which  he  had  slept,  and,  at 
tracted  by  the  noise  of  the  goat,  went  toward  the  trap 
in  which  it  was  imprisoned. 

Now  though  the  njegos  are  very  clever  in  getting 
prey,  they  are  otherwise  very  stupid,  and  can  easily  be 
deceived. 

So  the  njego  went  round  the  trap,  and  tried  several 
times  to  reach  the  goat  by  putting  his  big  paws  inside  ; 
but  the  sticks  were  made  so  secure  that  he  could  not 

70 


THE    BIG   NJEGO    A   MAN-EATER 

do  it.  He  had  never  seen  in  the  forest  anything  like 
the  trap,  and  suspected  that  all  might  not  be  right 
about  it.  But  at  last  his  hunger  got  the  better  of  him, 
and  he  entered  the  funnel,  and  walked  towards  the 
goat,  which  cried  louder  than  before,  it  was  so 
frightened.  At  first  the  njego  had  plenty  of  room, 
but,  as  he  advanced  farther  and  farther,  he  found  it 
more  difficult  to  move  forward  on  account  of  the  nar 
rowness  of  the  space.  Then  he  touched  a  spring,  and 
a  trap-door  fell  behind  him.  At  the  noise  the  trap 
door  made  in  falling,  the  njego  became  frightened  and 
tried  to  escape ;  but  he  found  himself  so  tightly  held 
that  he  could  neither  move  forward  nor  backward. 
Then  he  became  furious,  and  uttered  terrific  yells  of 
rage  in  quick  succession. 

There  was  great  joy  among  the  people  in  the  village 
when  they  heard  the  cries  of  the  njego,  for  they  knew 
he  was  trapped.  In  the  morning  they  went  to  the 
trap  and  saw  the  njego  making  frantic  efforts  to  get 
away ;  but  the  structure  had  been  built  so  strongly 
that  it  was  impossible  for  him  to  break  through. 

His  yells  of  rage  became  terrific  and  filled  the 
forest  with  their  din.  The  people  shouted  to  him : 
"  Ah,  ah,  you  ferocious  and  terrible  creature,  you 
njego  man-eater  !  You  have  eaten  enough  kambis  and 
ncheris  and  other  animals  which  we  would  have  killed 
and  eaten  ourselves,  if  it  had  not  been  for  you,  and  you 
have  also  eaten  our  people.  Now  it  is  all  over  with 
you.  You  will  eat  no  more.  No  one  will  be  afraid 
of  you  hereafter." 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

Then  they  passed  their  spears  through  the  openings 
between  the  sticks  and  pierced  him  to  death.  After 
they  were  sure  the  njego  was  dead,  they  broke  up  the 
trap,  and  took  his  body  out,  and  brought  it  to  the 
village  and  laid  it  in  the  middle  of  the  street,  and 
the  villagers,  looking  at  it,  shouted  :  "  You  wicked 
creature,  you  will  eat  no  more  of  our  people  !  No 
kambi  or  ncheri  will  ever  be  eaten  by  you  again.  We 
all  hate  you.  We  hate  you  more  than  any  other 
animal  of  the  forest." 

They  broke  his  jaws,  and  took  away  his  teeth  for 
a  necklace,  and  skinned  him  to  make  belts  of  his 
hide,  and  cut  off  his  tail  for  a  charm,  and  ate  his  liver 
to  give  them  courage. 


72 


CHAPTER   X 

THE    HAKOS,    OR    ANTS 

THE  forest  is  inhabited  by  many  species  of  ants, 
of  many  sizes,  and  of  many  different  colors. 
Their  number  is  so  great  that  they  not  only  cannot  be 
counted,  they  cannot  even  be  estimated.  Their  mode 
of  life,  their  habits,  and  their  homes  vary  greatly. 
Marvellous  is  the  intelligence  of  these  small  creatures. 
Their  thrift,  perseverance,  and  industry  are  beyond 
those  of  any  other  insect  or  animal. 

They  have  great  tenacity  of  purpose,  and  are  most 
systematic.  For  their  size  they  have  immense 
strength.  They  possess  many  gifts  to  suit  their 
different  modes  of  living.  They  understand  each 
other  perfectly,  otherwise  they  could  not  work  with 
such  deliberate  concert  of  action,  and  so  intelligently. 
They  have  chiefs,  leaders,  and  workers. 

Almost  all  the  species  of  ants  live  together  in 
large  numbers.  There  are  few  that  live  solitary  lives. 

Those  which  prey  alone  are  very  voracious  and 
fierce.  Many  ants  are  endowed  with  a  wonderful 
power  of  smell,  and  often,  though  not  one  of  them 
can  be  seen,  they  suddenly  make  their  appearance  by 
thousands,  or  tens  of  thousands,  when  they  scent  food, 
many  of  the  species  coming  even  from  under  the 

73 


THE   WORLD   OF   THE  GREAT  FOREST 

ground.  They  are  such  nuisances  that  human  beings 
have  to  put  the  feet  of  their  tables  and  cupboards 
into  vases  of  water  for  protection. 

Many  ants  have  the  ferocity  of  the  leopard  or 
other  night  animals.  They  attack  their  prey  with 
great  courage.  One  species,  the  bashikouays,  go  in 
countless  numbers  on  their  raids,  and  attack  all  life  in 
the  forest.  All  animals  flee  in  order  to  escape 
them. 

Among  the  most  wonderful  ants  are  the  termites, 
or  white  ants,  who  build  structures  of  clay,  or  of  grains 
of  earth,  to  shut  themselves  from  the  light,  to  be  pro 
tected  from  the  rays  of  the  sun,  from  the  rain,  and 
from  their  enemies. 

Some  species  of  termites  are  very  fond  of  cotton 
goods,  paper,  etc.,  but  avoid  woollen  or  silk  articles. 

They  manage  to  scent  paper  and  cotton  goods 
from  under  the  ground,  and  ascend  the  poles  upon 
which  the  trunks  or  chests  which  contain  the  goods 
rest.  They  build  a  long  tunnel  from  the  ground  on 
the  outside  of  the  poles,  and  climb  through  to  the 
chest,  into  which  they  eat  their  way.  The  tunnel  is 
made  of  minute  particles  of  wood  glued  togethe^ 
by  a  substance  coming  from  their  bodies.  Often 
the  owner  of  the  chest,  when  he  opens  it,  finds 
nothing  inside,  —  everything  having  been  eaten  up  by 
the  termites. 


74 


CHAPTER   XI 

THE    NCHELLELAYS,    OR    WHITE    ANTS 

ONE  of  the  white  ants,  or  nchellelays,  said  one 
day  to  another  nchellelay :  "  Strange  indeed  is 
our  life.  We  are  unlike  the  other  ants,  for  they 
enjoy  the  light  of  day,  and  breathe  the  air  that  passes 
over  the  prairies  and  forests.  They  can  ramble  where 
they  please  in  search  of  prey  or  food.  We  nchellelays 
live  in  darkness.  Light  is  odious  to  us.  The  sun 
is  our  greatest  enemy,  and  we  have  to  protect  ourselves 
from  its  rays,  which  kill  us  when  they  strike  our 
bodies.  If,  perchance,  by  some  catastrophe,  our 
houses  are  damaged,  and  we  are  thrown  out  of  them, 
we  have  not  only  the  sun,  but  the  rain  as  our  foe.  Crea 
tures  surround  us  on  every  side  to  pounce  upon  us 
and  devour  us,  and  many  kinds  of  ants  are  also  our 
enemies.  Our  life  is  safe  only  when  we  are  shut  up 
in  our  houses." 

An  old  and  wise  nchellelay,  who  had  been  listening, 
said  :  "  Why  do  you  complain  of  your  existence  ?  We 
are  born  with  great  gifts  which  other  creatures  do  not 
possess,  to  suit  our  mode  of  life.  To  us,  darkness  is 
light,  for  we  can  see  so  much  better  in  it.  We  erect 
buildings  through  which  neither  the  sun  nor  the  air, 
the  light  nor  rain,  nor  our  enemies  can  penetrate. 
We  build  during  the  night,  so  the  sun  cannot  harm 

75 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT   FOREST 

us.     Just  think  how  comfortable  and  cosey  are  our 
chambers ! " 

All  the  nchellelays  were  listening  to  what  the  wise 
and  knowing  one  said,  and  when  she  had  done  speak 
ing,  they  said :  "  You  are  right,  wise  one.  We  are 
born  with  certain  great  gifts,  which  no  other  creatures 
possess,  to  suit  our  mode  of  life,  and  protect  ourselves 
from  our  enemies." 

These  nchellelays  that  were  talking  belonged  to  the 
species  that  build  only  on  the  prairies  that  are  sur 
rounded  by  the  great  forest.  Their  structures,  or 
houses,  are  of  the  shape  of  gigantic  mushrooms.  They 
vary  in  height  from  ten  to  eighteen  inches,  the  tops 
or  crown  being  from  ten  to  eighteen  inches,  and  the 
stem  or  round  pillar  supporting  the  crown  about  five 
inches,  in  diameter.  As  the  colony  grows  larger,  some 
times  two  or  three  crowns  are  built  on  the  top  of  one 
another.  Each  house  forms  a  colony. 

From  immemorial  time,  these  nchellelays  have 
built  on  the  prairies,  and  as  they  increase  and  multiply 
in  a  wonderful  manner,  their  structures  cover  the 
whole  prairie,  and  can  be  counted  by  tens  and  tens 
of  thousands,  at  short  distances  from  one  another. 
Strange  indeed  is  the  sight. 

The  colony  inhabiting  these  gigantic  mushroom- 
like  structures  is  of  three  kinds  of  nchellelays  unlike 
in  shape  and  having  different  kinds  of  work  to 
perform.  The  chiefs,  few  in  number,  are  much  larger 
in  size  than  the  others.  Their  heads  are  armed  with 
powerful  nippers. 


THE   NCHELLELAYS,   OR   WHITE    ANTS 

The  next  class  are  smaller  than  the  chiefs,  have 
elongated  bodies,  and  are  armed  also  with  strong 
nippers.  These  are  the  officers  or  overseers  and 
fighters. 

The  third  class  are  exceedingly  numerous,  and  form 
by  far  the  greatest  population  of  each  colony.  They 
are  shorter  and  smaller  in  size.  Their  heads  are 
square,  and  their  nippers  are  shorter  than  those  of  the 
other  two  kinds,  and  of  a  somewhat  different  shape. 
This  class  is  born  to  work.  They  are  the  builders  of 
the  structures.  Their  life  is  one  of  labor.  They 
have  soft  bulky  bellies,  of  dark  bluish  or  yellowish 
gray  color,  filled  with  the  clay  they  feed  upon. 

The  head  and  nipper-like  jaws  of  the  chiefs,  officers, 
or  overseers  are  very  hard,  and  of  dark  color,  contrast 
ing  with  the  color  of  their  bodies.  These  pincers  are 
given  to  them  for  fighting,  wounding,  piercing,  catch 
ing  their  enemies,  and  also  tracing  lines  where  the  work 
has  to  be  done. 

One  day  some  mushroom  nchellelays  said :  "  We 
need  a  new  house,  and  we  will  build  one  which  will 
last  for  years,  through  which  neither  rain  nor  sun  can 
come,  and  through  which  our  enemies  cannot  enter. 
We  are  small,  it  is  true,  but  among  the  gifts  that  we 
have  are  patience,  perseverance,  industry,  and  a  good 
thinking  brain.  With  these  four  gifts  we  can  accom 
plish  a  good  deal  and  succeed." 

There  was  great  excitement  among  the  nchellelays 
when  they  made  ready  to  commence  their  work. 
The  chiefs  gave  orders  to  the  officers  or  overseers,  and 

77 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

these  gave  orders  to  the  workers.  The  dry  season  is 
the  time  the  nchellelays  choose  for  building.  They 
know  the  time  of  the  two  seasons,  the  rainy  and  the 
dry,  perfectly  well. 

The  workers,  having  received  their  orders,  began 
work  in  great  earnest.  They  made  deep  perpendicu 
lar  tunnels  to  reach  the  blue  clay,  and,  when  they 
had  reached  it,  they  made  other  tunnels  upward,  — 
all  these  under  the  place  chosen  for  building  their 
house  in. 

It  was  a  remarkable  sight  when  they  began  their 
labor.  The  workers  followed  one  another  in  a  con 
tinuous  stream,  and  ejected  a  quantity  of  thick,  soft, 
semi-liquid  clay,  which  they  had  eaten  and  which  had 
been  transformed  during  the  digestive  process  into  a 
gluey  material.  Each  load  was  put  side  by  side  with 
wonderful  precision.  After  this,  they  followed  one 
another  and  disappeared  under  the  ground.  The 
column  of  workers  never  ceased  for  an  instant. 
There  did  not  seem  to  be  any  lazy  ones  among  them; 
no  one  was  shirking  work  and  lagging  behind.  They 
marched  like  a  well-drilled  army  of  workers  who 
knew  what  their  duty  was.  Their  system  showed 
great  intelligence.  No  bricklayer  among  the  most 
civilized  human  beings  could  have  laid  bricks  side  by 
side  with  more  skill  than  they  did  their  loads.  The 
officers  were  looking  on  and  watching  how  the  work 
was  done. 

Once  in  a  while  some  of  the  nchellelays  brought 
grains  of  earth  and  deposited  them  in  the  mortar. 


THE    NCHELLELAYS,  OR  WHITE   ANTS 

The  structure  rose  as  if  by  enchantment,  and  at  last 
the  making  of  the  crown  was  begun,  numerous  cells 
or  rooms  communicating  with  one  another.  A  large 
cell,  much  larger  than  any  of  the  others,  was  built  for 
their  queen. 

Every  tunnel  and  cell  was  coated  with  a  gluey, 
shining  matter,  coming  from  the  bodies  of  the  work 
ers,  to  prevent  them  from  giving  way.  At  the  base 
of  the  column  they  had  built  inside  a  round  clay  ball, 
divided  into  three  parts  which  could  be  separated,  full 
of  very  small  cells  for  eggs  to  be  deposited  in.  This 
ball  communicated  with  the  rest  of  the  buildings  by 
tunnels  through  which  the  eggs  might  be  transported 
to  the  various  cells. 

After  the  building  was  completed,  the  nchellelays 
said,  "  Now  we  must  go  and  store  in  many  of  the 
cells  little  grains  of  earth  to  use  in  our  mortar."  So 
they  went  to  work,  and  brought  loads  of  these  and 
stored  them  in  the  cells  which  the  officers  had  selected. 

When  everything  was  in  order,  a  new  arrangement 
was  made.  The  officers  were  scattered  over  the  build 
ings  and  kept  watch  over  the  cells.  The  large  cell 
for  their  queen  had  an  entrance  at  each  end  com 
municating  with  all  the  corridors  in  the  house.  A  large 
body  of  officers  kept  watch  and  surrounded  her. 

In  the  course  of  time  the  queen  did  nothing  but 
lay  eggs,  and  an  enormous  number  of  them. 

These  eggs  hatched  from  the  heat,  and  then  the 
little  tiny  nchellelays,  which  were  of  a  milky  white 
color,  were  taken  to  different  cells  by  the  big  ones, 

79 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT   FOREST 

and  in  the  course  of  time  became  large  themselves. 
When  the  colony  became  too  large,  the  nchellelays 
said  to  one  another :  "  Now  we  are  living  too  many 
together.  Our  structure  is  too  small,  and  we  must 
build  a  new  addition  to  our  dwelling."  So  the  workers 
went  down  to  the  clay  and  built  a  short  stem,  as  they 
had  done  before,  and  then  made  another  mushroom- 
like  cap.  They  also  built  many  cells,  and  the  surplus 
population  took  possession  of  these  new  ones. 

But  the  colony  kept  increasing,  and  another  mush 
room-like  structure  was  added,  and  built  on  the  top 
of  the  second  cap.  At  last  a  fourth  one  was  needed 
and  then  the  nchellelays  said,  "  We  cannot  add  to  our 
structure,  for  it  would  be  too  high  and  become  top 
heavy." 

While  the  mushroom  nchellelays  were  enjoying 
quietly  the  comforts  of  the  house  they  had  built  with 
so  much  care  and  skill,  the  following  event  took 
place. 

Another  kind  of  nchellelays,  that  were  lazy  and 
lived  as  much  as  they  could  on  the  labors  of  others, 
said  to  one  another :  "  Let  us  make  our  abode  in  the 
structure  of  the  mushroom  nchellelay.  We  must  be 
very  cunning,  for  it  is  not  an  easy  matter  to  build 
cells  and  tunnels  in  their  house  without  being  dis 
covered  ;  still  we  are  accustomed  to  do  this,  and  can 
succeed  if  we  want  to.  But  if  we  are  found  out,  we 
shall  have  a  hard  time,  for  they  are  much  stronger 
and  more  powerful  than  we  are." 

These  intruders  were  very  small,  mere  pigmies  in 

80 


THE    NCHELLELAYS,  OR  WHITE   ANTS 

size  compared  with  the  mushroom  nchellelay.  They 
also  had  chiefs,  officers  or  overseers,  and  workers. 
They  went  forthwith  to  work,  and  with  their  nippers 
dug  into  the  thick  walls  of  the  mushroom  nchellelays 
from  the  bottom,  carrying  away  the  debris  of  the 
material  they  demolished  and  depositing  it  in  the 
earth.  They  took  good  care  to  make  no  mistake, 
and  their  small  cells  and  tunnels  were  built  between 
the  original  cells. 

They  were  extremely  intelligent,  and  could  tell 
when  they  were  getting  dangerously  near  the  tunnels 
or  cells  of  their  bigger  neighbors.  They  succeeded  at 
last  in  building  their  cells  and  corridors  throughout 
the  structure.  These  were  coated  with  a  black  gluey 
matter,  and  consequently  were  different  in  color  from 
those  of  their  neighbors,  which  were  yellow. 

So  two  colonies  of  different  nchellelays  lived  in  the 
same  buildings,  the  big  ones  not  knowing  that  intruders 
were  in  their  abode.  These  little  dwarf  nchellelays 
lived  happy  and  contented,  and  often  laughed  at  their 
big  neighbors,  saying,  cc  They  do  not  know  that  we 
have  made  our  home  in  their  house." 

One  day  the  njokoos  (elephants)  happened  to  come 
into  the  country  of  the  mushroom  nchellelays,  and 
several  bulls  getting  into  a  fight  among  themselves, 
they  demolished  many  of  the  buildings  of  the  mush 
room  nchellelays,  treading  upon  them  with  their  big 
feet,  often  crushing  a  great  part  of  their  structures, 
and  thus  also  killing  many  nchellelays,  and  wounding 
many  others. 

6  81 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT   FOREST 

The  nchellelays  were  very  much  excited,  and  those 
who  had  escaped  with  their  lives  and  heard  the  crash, 
went  into  all  the  cells  to  tell  of  what  had  happened. 
None  could  tell  the  cause  of  the  catastrophe,  for  such  a 
thing  had  never  happened  to  them  before. 

This  was  indeed  a  great  and  sudden  misfortune. 
The  officers  made  their  appearance  immediately  at  the 
opening  of  every  cell  or  tunnel  that  had  been  damaged, 
put  their  heads  out  of  the  entrances  to  see  what  was 
the  cause  of  this  sudden  smash,  and  then  disappeared 
inside  and  reported  to  their  chiefs. 

Soon  after,  a  large  number  of  officers  or  over 
seers  arrived  at  all  the  breaks.  They  cried,  "  Let  us 
defend  our  homes,"  their  big  nippers  opening  and 
closing  all  the  time.  They  were  ready  to  bite  and  to 
fight  any  intruder,  not  a  nchellelay,  that  wanted  to 
get  inside  of  their  dwelling,  and  at  the  least  sign 
of  danger  they  opened  their  nippers  still  wider,  ready 
to  bite. 

Great,  indeed,  had  been  the  havoc  made  by  these 
njokoos.  Dead  and  wounded  were  lying  everywhere 
among  the  ruins.  Among  them  were  young  nchellelays 
of  a  milky  white  color,  and  others  quite  tiny,  having 
just  come  out  of  the  eggs.  Eggs,  whole  or  smashed, 
were  seen  in  every  direction.  It  was  a  terrible  sight 
to  contemplate  for  the  nchellelays.  Everything  was 
topsy-turvy. 

Still  the  nchellelays  recovered  quickly  from  the 
sudden  confusion  into  which  they  had  been  thrown, 
for  they  had  cool  heads.  The  work  of  rescue  began 

82 


THE    NCHELLELAYS,  OR  WHITE   ANTS 

first.  Luckily  it  was  a  cloudy  day  and  the  dry  season, 
when  the  sun  is  not  powerful. 

Orders  were  given,  and  the  nchellelays  went  out  to 
begin  the  work  of  rescue.  They  were  seen  every 
where  among  the  debris,  looking  round  for  the  dead 
and  wounded.  When  they  saw  one,  they  immediately 
went  toward  him.  If  so  dangerously  wounded  that 
they  thought  there  was  no  hope  for  him,  he  was  left 
on  the  ground  to  die.  When  they  saw  that  there  was 
hope  of  saving  the  life  of  one,  they  took  the  poor 
wounded  one  gently  between  their  pincers  and  carried 
him  tenderly  inside,  those  who  guarded  the  entrance 
making  room  for  the  rescuer  to  pass.  The  wounded 
that  could,  hopped  or  crept  around,  and  were  helped 
and  led  in. 

The  young  were  also  carried  in  with  the  utmost 
tenderness  and  affection,  for  they  were  babies  and 
helpless.  Then,  and  last,  the  eggs  that  had  not  been 
injured  were  also  carried  in. 

In  the  great  catastrophe  that  had  taken  place,  the 
big  nchellelays  and  the  pigmy  ones  were  mingled 
together  in  the  ruins.  The  pigmies  had  also  many 
dead  and  wounded.  Their  presence  was  the  first 
intimation  that  the  big  nchellelays  had  of  them. 
Their  rage  knew  no  bounds  at  the  sight.  Officers 
and  workers  attacked  the  intruders  with  great  fury. 
These,  however,  fought  with  the  utmost  bravery,  for 
it  was  a  fight  for  life  with  them,  and  many  of  the  big 
ones  bit  the  dust  in  the  conflicts  that  took  place. 

The  mode  of  warfare  among  the  nchellelays  is 

83 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 


to  disembowel  one  another  by  piercing  their  soft 
stomachs  with  their  nippers.  The  belly  is  the  vul 
nerable  part  of  their  body,  and  once  pierced  they  are 
crippled,  and  die  soon  afterwards. 

Now  the  ruins  were  turned  into  a  great  battlefield. 
It  was  soon  a  scene  of  carnage.  While  many  of 
the  big  nchellelays  were  transport 
ing  the  wounded,  the  young,  and 
the  eggs  inside  the  ruins  of  their 
buildings,  many  were  busy  seeking 


the  pigmy  nchellelays,  the  intruders  within  their  house, 
to  fight  and  kill  them.  Dead  and  wounded  from  the 
numerous  combats  lay  everywhere.  There  were  many 
thrilling  fights  and  death-struggles.  The  attacks  on 
both  sides  were  fierce,  and  no  one  asked  quarter. 
Combatants  were  seen  fighting  one  another  over  the 
whole  battlefield.  Sometimes  the  fight  occurred  in  a 
very  rugged  place  where  the  ruins  of  the  buildings  lay 
around  on  the  top  of  one  another.  One  nchellelay  was 
seen  ascending  the  steep  incline  ready  to  charge  the 
enemy  at  the  top,  who  was  waiting  for  his  onslaught. 
In  another  place,  one  was  descending  with  great  fury  to 
attack  his  enemy,  who  was  coming  up. 

84 


THE    NCHELLELAYS,  OR  WHITE  ANTS 

Elsewhere,  one  could  see  a  worker  or  an  officer  of 
the  larger  kind  attack  his  diminutive  enemy,  and 
succeed,  after  some  sparring,  in  disembowelling  him, 
when  suddenly  an  officer  of  the  pigmy  kind,  seeing 
one  of  his  comrades  in  the  fight,  or  in  his  death- 
throes,  would  attack  the  victorious  one  before  he  had 
time  to  turn  round  and  get  ready  for  the  fight,  and 
succeed  in  disembowelling  him  with  his  pincers, 
although  the  antagonist  was  at  least  two  or  three 
times  his  size. 

It  was  a  miniature  fight  of  giants  and  pigmies,  the 
latter  fighting  as  bravely  as  the  giants. 

The  time  at  last  came  when  all  the  pigmy  kind 
were  overpowered  and  killed,  one  by  one,  and  the 
battlefield  was  strewn  with  their  dead,  mingled  here 
and  there  with  those  of  the  larger  ants.  When  the 
battle  was  ended,  and  the  young  and  the  eggs  had 
been  carried  inside  of  what  remained  of  the  building, 
the  work  of  repairing  all  the  rents  that  had  been  made 
by  the  destructive  work  of  the  njokoos  began. 

The  officers  made  tracings  with  the  points  of  their 
nippers  at  the  apertures  to  show  where  the  closing 
was  to  take  place.  Then  the  workers  came  and  first 
carried  away  the  debris  that  was  in  their  way.  Then 
they  closed  the  walls  in  the  manner  in  which  they 
had  at  first  built  the  structure,  by  putting  loads  upon 
loads  of  clay-like  matter  upon  one  another.  Others 
came  carrying  minute  pebbles  or  coarse  grains  of 
earth  in  their  mouths,  and  during  the  night  they 
finished  rebuilding  the  structure  just  as  it  was  before. 

85 


CHAPTER  XII 

THE    GIANT    NCHELLELAYS 

THE  giant  nchellelays  are  so  named  as  they  are 
much  larger  than  all  the  other  species  of  nchel 
lelays,  or  white  ants.  Their  bodies  are  of  a  whitish 
yellow  color,  with  very  hard  black  heads,  armed  with 
most  formidable  pincers,  —  terrible  weapons  for  righting 
and  biting.  Their  officers  or  overseers  are  smaller 
than  the  workers,  but  have  more  elongated  bodies. 
As  they  are  larger  than  all  the  other  nchellelays,  so 
their  structures  are  much  larger  also.  They  vary 
from  five  to  fifteen  feet  in  height.  Millions  upon 
millions  of  grains  of  earth  are  required  in  their  con 
struction.  Their  mode  of  building  these  is  wonderful 
and  unlike  that  of  other  termites.  How  they  live 
under  the  ground  before  their  structure  is  built,  no 
one  can  tell. 

One  day  the  giant  nchellelays  said :  "  Let  us  build 
a  new  structure  for  us  to  live  in  and  be  secured  against 
our  enemies,  the  air,  the  rain,  and  the  sun." 

"  Yes,"  replied  all  the  others  forming  the  great 
colony,  adding : 

"  We  shall  have  to  work  hard  and  use  a  great  deal 
of  thought,  perseverance,  and  skill  before  our  work 
is  accomplished,  for  untold  numbers  of  grains  of  yel- 

86 


THE    GIANT   NCHELLELAYS 

low  earth  will  have  to  be  taken  from  under  the  black 
loam  and  carried  above  the  ground  where  we  are  to 
build,  put  side  by  side,  and  cemented  together  before 
our  home  is  finished." 

Soon  after  this  talk  they  began  their  labors.  They 
brought,  from  the  numerous  tunnels  they  made,  grains 
of  yellow  earth,  and  laid  their  foundation,  each  nchel- 
lelay  carrying  only  one  grain  at  a  time. 

The  workers  labored  with  great  earnestness ;  thou 
sands  upon  thousands  carried  between  their  pincers 
grains  of  earth,  and  laid  them  down  side  by  side,  each 
passing  over  the  grain  he  had  brought  and  deposit 
ing  on  it  a  gluey  substance  which  might  be  called 
mortar  or  cement,  and  which  joined  the  grains  of  sand 
together. 

Layers  upon  layers  were  built  in  this  manner,  and 
this  flat  foundation  communicated  by  numerous  tunnels 
with  the  yellow  earth  underneath.  The  officers  kept 
watch  to  see  that  the  work  was  done.  Special  care 
was  taken  in  the  building  of  the  outer  walls,  for  these 
were  to  be  very  solid,  having  to  protect  the  interior 
from  the  weather  or  from  violence.  They  made 
the  wall  much  thicker  and  harder,  and  impervious  to 
rain. 

When  daylight  approached,  they  closed  all  the 
openings  leading  into  the  building.  Strange  to  say, 
though  it  is  dark  in  the  house,  the  ants  can  tell  when 
the  day  is  over  and  when  the  night  has  come.  So, 
after  the  sun  had  set  and  darkness  had  come  over 
the  land,  the  officers  broke  with  their  big  pincers  the 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

mortar  that  had  closed  the  openings,  and  the  workers 
continued  their  task.  The  building  rose  as  if  by  en 
chantment,  for  thousands  upon  thousands  were  work 
ing  with  all  their  might. 

As  the  structure  rose,  the  number  of  cells  and  tun 
nels  increased,  and  the  building  assumed  somewhat  of 
a  sugar-loaf  appearance. 

As  they  began  to  reach  the  top,  they  built  points 
or  pinnacles,  making  the  top  the  very  strongest  of 
all  the  parts  of  the  structure. 

The  giant  nchellelays  were  wise  in  the  art  of  build 
ing,  and  knew  that  the  summit  of  their  dwellings  was 
to  bear  the  brunt  of  the  weather,  of  the  rain-storm, 
and  even  the  fall  of  a  tree,  so  that  in  this  place  the 
masonry  was  several  inches  thick. 

The  structure,  after  a  great  deal  of  labor,  was  fin 
ished,  attaining  a  height  of  fourteen  feet  and  a  diame 
ter  of  five  feet  at  the  base.  Hundreds  of  millions  of 
grains  of  yellow  earth  had  been  used  in  its  construc 
tion.  Each  grain  had  been  placed  as  systematically 
as  if  the  most  skilful  bricklayer  had  done  the  work, 
and  the  roofs  of  the  cells  were  arched,  for  the  ants 
knew  the  strength  of  the  arch.  And,  when  com 
pleted,  the  building  was  so  strong,  high,  and  large, 
that  even  the  huge  njokoo  had  to  pass  it  by,  leaving 
it  untouched. 

A  long  time  had  passed,  when  one  day  a  very  large 
dead  branch  fell  upon  the  building  of  the  giant  nchelle 
lays  and  destroyed  some  of  the  pinnacles.  News  soon 
spread  through  the  cells  that  a  great  accident  had  hap- 

88 


THE    GIANT   NCHELLELAYS 

pened,  that  the  top  of  the  house  was  damaged ;  there 
was  great  commotion  and  excitement  among  the  popu 
lation  when  this  occurred.  The  officers  came  round  the 
openings  to  see  what  was  the  matter,  and  to  defend 
them  against  possible  intruders.  The  wounded  and 
the  eggs  were  brought  inside.  The  work  of  repairing 
began  at  once,  and  the  workers  brought  their  grains  of 
earth,  and  much  of  the  broken  material  was  used  in 
making  repairs. 


During  the  night  the  nchellelays  rebuilt  the  pinnacles, 
the  new  ones  being  of  exactly  the  same  shape  as  those 
that  had  been  destroyed. 

Things  went  on  well  for  a  few  days,  when  another 
huge  limb  of  the  same  tree  fell  on  the  structure  and 
damaged  it  again. 

It  was  again  rebuilt  as  it  was  before  the  accident. 
Sometime  afterward  the  building  was  once  more 
damaged  by  another  limb  of  the  tree. 

89 


THE   WORLD  OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

This  time  the  giant  nchellelays  held  a  consultation, 
and  after  deliberation  concluded  not  to  rebuild  the 
pinnacle,  deeming  the  place  dangerous,  and  determined 
to  erect  another  structure  in  some  other  place,  and  they 
accordingly  withdrew. 


90 


CHAPTER   XIII 

THE    NGOMBAS,    OR    PORCUPINES 

ONE  day  two  porcupines  were  getting  ready  to 
go  out  of  their  dark  burrow,  to  seek  for  food, 
for  they  were  hungry.  They  were  near  the  entrance, 
and  listened.  Hearing  no  noise,  and  scenting  no 
danger,  one  said  to  his  mate,  "  All  is  quiet ;  so  we  can 
safely  leave  our  home/' 

After  they  were  out,  they  raised  their  quills,  many  of 
which  were  about  one  foot  long,  hard  and  sharp,  and 
shook  them  against  each  other  and  made  a  rattling  noise. 

Then  the  big  ngomba  said  to  his  mate :  "  Dear, 
we  porcupines  are  not  blood-thirsty ;  we  do  not  attack 
the  animals  of  the  forest,  and  drink  their  blood,  and 
feed  upon  them ;  neither  do  we  fight  them.  We  are 
harmless.  We  feed  on  roots,  nuts,  and  vegetable 
things.  What  a  precious  gift  our  coat  is  !  Its  quills 
are  our  weapons  of  defence.  No  animals  in  this  great 
forest  possess  such  a  valuable  coat.  When  we  walk, 
our  quills  lie  quietly  on  our  back  or  sides.  When  we 
fear  danger,  we  roll  ourselves  into  a  ball,  and  raise 
them  upright,  and  we  feel  safe  and  fear  no  animal  of 
the  forest,  no  matter  how  fierce  he  may  be." 

His  mate  replied,  thoughtfully,  however :  "  You 
forget;  there  is  one  enemy  we  have,  and  we  dread 

91 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT   FOREST 

him  much,  though  he  is  very  small.  It  is  the  bashi- 
kouay  ant.  When  they  attack  us,  their  number  is  so 
great  that  they  can  penetrate  between  our  quills,  attack 
our  bellies,  which  are  not  protected,  and  our  eyes,  and 
well-nigh  devour  us.  How  we  hate  and  fear  the 
bashikouays  ! " 

The  big  porcupine  that  day  went  farther  than  usual 
from  his  burrow.  He  heard  heavy  footsteps,  and  said 
to  himself:  "  These  are  the  footsteps  of  the  njokoo. 
Perhaps  he  is  coming  my  way."  The  footsteps  came 
nearer  and  nearer,  and  the  porcupine  rolled  himself  up, 
not  daring  to  walk  farther. 

The  njokoo  came  nearer,  looked  at  him,  and  then 
stopped.  The  poor  porcupine,  as  he  heard  the  foot 
steps  of  the  elephant  nearing  him,  stood  still,  as  if  he 
were  dead ;  but  his  quills  were  erect. 

The  njokoo  looked  at  the  ngomba,  for  he  had 
never  seen  one  before.  He  was  suspicious,  and  did 
not  like  the  looks  of  his  sharp-pointed  quills,  and 
trumpeted,  which  meant :  "  I  am  not  going  to  toss  you 
about  with  my  trunk.  I  am  not  going  to  play  ball 
with  you.  Neither  will  I  trample  upon  you,  and  try  to 
crush  your  body  under  my  feet.  I  do  not  fancy  these 
sharp-pointed  quills.  They  would  hurt  my  trunk  if 
I  got  hold  of  you,  and  lame  me  for  life  and  perhaps 
cause  my  death  if  I  trampled  upon  you.  So  do  not 
be  afraid.  I  will  not  try  to  hurt  you/' 

After  this  the  njokoo  left,  and  for  a  while  the  porcu 
pine  could  hear  his  heavy  footsteps  or  the  cracking  of 
saplings  which  he  broke  as  he  walked  through  them. 

92 


THE    NGOMBAS,  OR   PORCUPINES 

The  porcupine  did  not  know  what  the  trumpeting 
of  the  njokoo  meant,  and  did  not  know  what  the  big 
and  powerful  njokoo  said  to  him.  But  he  had  been 
so  scared  by  the  elephant  that  he  did  not  dare  for  a 
long  while  to  unroll  himself  and  go  about.  At  last, 
when  he  was  sure  that  he  was  safe,  he  continued  his 
rambling  in  search  of  food. 

He  soon  came  to  the  den  of  two  leopards  who  were 
out  in  search  of  prey  for  their  three  baby  leopards, 
who  were  walking  round  outside.  As  soon  as  these 
saw  the  poor  porcupine,  they  started  for  him,  and  he 


had  just  time  to  roll  himself  up,  for  their  steps  were  so 
light  that  he  had  not  heard  them. 

The  little  leopards  were  so  young  that  they  had  no 
experience,  and  thought  they  would  play  with  the  much- 
frightened  porcupine  with  their  paws,  just  as  a  cat  does 
with  a  mouse.  But  they  did  not  try  it  twice,  when 
they  felt  the  pricking  of  the  porcupine's  quills. 

93 


THE    WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT    FOREST 

As  soon  as  the  tiny  little  leopards  went  back  to 
their  den,  the  porcupine  unrolled  himself  and  ran 
away  as  fast  as  his  short  legs  would  let  him.  After  he 
had  settled  down  into  a  walk,  he  passed  a  big  snake  of 
the  color  of  the  dead  leaves,  hiding  among  them  and 
waiting  for  prey.  When  he  heard  the  noise  the  por 
cupine  was  making,  he  was  delighted,  for  he  said, 
"  Surely  I  am  going  to  have  something  to  eat ; "  but 
the  porcupine  had  not  yet  wholly  got  over  his  fright, 
and  was  walking  with  his  quills  standing  up.  The 
snake,  with  his  sharp,  small  eyes,  said  :  "  It  is  of  no  use 
to  try  to  swallow  this  creature,  for  his  quills  would 
pierce  and  kill  me.  I  shall  let  him  alone." 

It  was  late,  and  though  the  porcupine  was  far  away 
from  his  burrow,  he  knew  the  way  there  well,  for  he 
was  acquainted  with  the  surrounding  country,  and 
was  in  a  hurry  to  go  to  meet  his  mate,  whom  he 
loved  tenderly. 

Hurrying  along,  he  suddenly  heard  a  noise  above 
his  head,  and,  being  scared,  he  rolled  himself  once  more 
and  raised  his  quills.  The  noise  had  been  made  by 
a  ngina  (gorilla)  on  a  tree  laden  with  fruit  that  he  had 
been  eating,  and  he  was  coming  down.  The  ngina 
was  unaware  of  the  presence  of  the  porcupine.  He 
had  reached  the  lower  branch  of  the  tree,  and  was 
hanging  to  it  before  stepping  on  the  ground.  As  his 
left  arm  was  ready  to  let  the  branch  go,  he  stepped  on 
the  porcupine,  and  gave  a  terrific  yell  of  pain,  as  the 
quills  went  deeply  into  the  sole  of  one  of  his  feet. 
Quick  as  a  flash,  he  tried  to  take  away  the  porcupine 

94 


THE   NGOMBAS,  OR    PORCUPINES 

from  his  foot  with  one  of  his  hands.  Then  he  gave 
another  terrific  groan  of  pain,  for  some  of  the  quills 
entered  the  palm  of  his  hand.  The  blood  was  dripping 


from  both  his 
hand  and  foot. 
Then,  hanging 
to  the  branch  he 
had  not  quitted, 
he  lifted  himself 
up  and  shook  his 
legs  several  times 
with  great  force, 
and  with  a 
mighty  kick  sent  the  porcupine  flying  to  a  long  dis 
tance.  The  porcupine  was  terribly  scared.  Never  in 
his  life  had  he  been  attacked  and  buffeted  in  this  way. 
Nor  had  he  ever  heard  such  terrific  yells  and  groans. 

95 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

All  his  muscles  were  called  into  play  in  order  to 
keep  his  body  in  ball-shape  and  his  quills  standing 
upright,  for  the  ngina  was  furious,  yelling  and  roaring 
by  him ;  but  fortunately  he  did  not  dare  to  handle 
him,  though  the  frightened  porcupine  thought  his  last 
day  had  come. 

At  last  the  ngina  went  away.  The  porcupine 
remained  coiled  for  a  long  time,  for  he  had  never  been 
so  frightened  in  his  life.  Then,  when  he  thought 
there  was  no  more  danger,  having  listened  carefully 
and  heard  no  noise,  he  continued  his  way  toward  his 
burrow. 

The  porcupine  met  with  no  farther  adventures  on 
that  day,  and  finally  came  to  his  burrow  and  saw  his 
mate  waiting  for  him.  She  said,  "  What  makes  you 
so  late?  I  began  to  feel  anxious." 

"  Dear,"  he  replied,  "  I  have  had  an  awful  time 
to-day.  The  wonder  to  me  is  that  I  have  come  back 
at  all.  I  have  never  met  with  so  many  adventures 
and  dangers  in  my  life  before;  but,  thanks  to  my 
wonderful  coat,  I  am  safe/'  And  after  they  had 
retreated  into  their  burrow,  he  recounted  to  his  mate 
what  had  happened  to  him  during  the  day. 


96 


CHAPTER   XIV 

THE    IPI,    OR    GIANT    ANT-EATER 

DARKNESS  had  come  over  the  land.  An  ipi 
was  listening  inside  of  the  opening  of  his  bur 
row.  After  making  sure  that  there  was  no  danger,  he 
came  outside  and  stood  still,  waiting  for  his  mate  to 
come  out  also.  His  body  was  about  five  feet  long, 
and  covered  on  the  upper  surface  and  on  the  sides 


chiefly  with  large,  thick,  horny,  yellowish,  overlap 
ping  scales,  these  scales  becoming  smaller  as  they 
approached  his  head.  He  shook  his  body  and  the 
scales  rattled,  as  they  struck  together. 

Soon  after,  his  mate  came  out,  and  they  looked  at 
each  other  and  admired  their  wonderful  coats. 
7  97 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE   GREAT   FOREST 

The  big  ipi  said  to  his  mate :  "  Fortunate  are  we  to 
possess  such  a  good  coat  to  cover  our  bodies.  Our 
scales  are  so  hard  that  after  we  have  rolled  ourselves 
up  for  protection,  the  teeth  of  our  enemies  cannot 
pierce  them.  They  slip  over  them.  It  is  our  weapon 
of  defence,  as  we  ipis  have  no  teeth. 

"  Strangely  do  we  pass  our  lives.  We  have  no 
choice  of  food,  but  feed  on  ants.  We  are  gifted  with 
an  extensile  tongue  which  we  can  shorten  or  lengthen 
at  our  will,  and  at  its  extremity  it  is  covered  with  a 
glutinous  secretion,  and  no  ant  when  caught  can  ever 
escape.  Oh,  what  a  multitude  of  ants  we  have  eaten 
since  we  were  born  !  "  he  laughingly  added.  "  What 
a  number  we  need  to  satisfy  our  appetites  ! " 

"  Yes,  indeed,"  his  mate  replied,  u  and  sometimes 
the  ants  become  scarce,  or  we  cannot  find  many,  and 
we  have  to  go  back  to  our  burrows  with  empty 
stomachs." 

Their  conversation  was  suddenly  interrupted. 
They  heard  a  great  noise  near,  and  they  rolled  them 
selves  up  and  pressed  their  scales  against  one  another. 

The  noise  had  been  made  by  a  number  of  kambis 
who  were  fleeing  at  great  speed  from  some  enemy. 
When  this  noise  had  died  away,  the  two  ipis  unrolled 
themselves,  and  said  good-by  to  each  other,  and  each 
went  a  different  way  in  search  of  ants. 

The  sight  of  the  ipis  at  night  is  wonderful. 
Nothing  escapes  them  when  they  go  through  the 
forest  and  jungle.  They  can  even  spy  a  single  ant 
marching  alone,  though  it  is  pitch  dark. 

98 


THE    IPI,   OR    GIANT   ANT-EATER 

The  two  ipis  were  fortunate  that  night,  for  both  dis 
covered  long  lines  of  ants  that  were  foraging.  After 
getting  within  a  proper  distance  from  the  ants,  each 
ipi  began  his  meal.  Every  time  the  tongue  came  out, 
its  extremity  struck  an  ant  which  stuck  fast  to  the 
gluey  matter,  and  could  not  escape.  The  tongue 
went  in,  deposited  the  ant  inside  in  the  twinkling  of 
an  eye,  and  then  came  out  again  and  struck  another 
ant. 

After  eating  thousands  of  ants,  the  appetite  of  each 
was  satisfied,  and  they  returned  toward  their  homes 
and  told  each  other  of  the  good  luck  they  had  had, 
and  soon  were  fast  asleep. 

In  the  course  of  time  the  ipis  had  to  travel  farther 
and  farther  to  get  their  meal  of  ants,  and  one  evening, 
after  their  return  with  empty  stomachs,  the  large  ipi 
said  to  his  mate,  "  Let  us  leave  this  part  of  the  forest 
and  go  somewhere  else,  for  ants  have  certainly  become 
very  scarce  in  this  neighborhood." 

The  following  night  they  bade  good-by  to  their 
old  burrow,  where  they  had  had  so  many  days  of  cosey 
sleep,  and  where  they  had  raised  a  family.  They 
journeyed  toward  a  new  country,  picking  up  here 
and  there  an  ant  with  their  sticky  tongues.  Ere  long 
they  came  to  a  big  tree,  and  saw  a  hollow  under  its 
roots,  and  said,  "  Here  is  a  good  dark  place  to  spend 
the  day  and  sleep,"  and  they  went  in  and  slept 
soundly.  When  night  came,  they  set  forth  again, 
and  continued  to  seek  for  a  region  where  ants  were 
plentiful. 

99 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

The  third  night  they  met  a  great  many  ants  that 
were  foraging.  They  thought  it  would  be  a  good 
country  for  them  to  settle  in,  and  said,  "  Let  us  find 
a  hill  on  the  side  of  which  we  may  make  our  burrow/' 
They  were  soon  fortunate  enough  to  find  one,  and  set 
to  work  with  a  will  digging  out  the  ground  with  their 
claws.  That  night  they  did  not  finish  their  burrow, 
so  they  went  back  to  the  hole  under  the  root  of  the 
tree  where  they  had  slept  before.  The  following 
night  they  worked  very  hard  and  finished  their  home, 
which  had  two  openings  communicating  with  the 
chamber  in  which  they  were  to  sleep. 

When  the  work  was  done,  one  ipi  said  to  the  other: 
"  We  have  worked  hard  to  make  our  new  home.  It 
is  a  good  thing  for  us  that  our  short  legs  are  so  mus 
cular  and  that  our  claws  are  so  strong.  How  much 
earth  we  can  move  away  !  " 

They  felt  very  happy  to  be  able  to  sleep  in  their 
new  home.  There  they  lived  for  a  while,  ants  being 
plentiful  in  the  neighborhood,  and  raised  a  family  of 
little  ipis. 


IOO 


CHAPTER   XV 

THE    NGOMBA,    OR    PORCUPINE THE    IZOMBA,    OR 

TURTLE THE    IPI,    OR    ANT-EATER 

ONE  day  an  izomba  (turtle)  was  walking  in  the 
forest,  when  suddenly  she  heard  a  noise,  and 
became  suspicious ;  as  the  noise  came  nearer,  she  drew 
her  head,  her  four  feet,  and  tail  under  her  shell,  and 
said,  "Now  I  am  safe.3' 

It  happened  that  an  ipi  had  made  the  noise  that 
scared  the  turtle.  The  ipi  stopped  and  looked  at  the 
turtle  with  great  curiosity.  Then  she,  too,  heard  a 
noise  and  became  suspicious  in  her  turn,  coiled  round 
and  made  her  scales  as  tight  against  each  other  as  she 
could,  and  said  also,  "  Now  I  am  safe." 

The  noise  had  been  made  by  a  porcupine  whose 
coat  had  the  longest,  hardest  quills  that  porcupines 
have.  It  happened  that  he  came  between  the  ipi  and 
the  izomba.  When  he  saw  them,  he  stood  still  and 
looked  at  them  both  with  great  curiosity. 

Suddenly  he  heard  a  crash  through  the  jungle.  A 
dead  branch  of  a  tall  tree  had  broken  off  and  had 
fallen  on  the  ground.  He  in  his  turn  was  so  scared 
that  he  rolled  himself  up  and  put  his  quills  out,  for 
he  thought  njokoos  had  made  the  noise,  and  then  he, 
too,  exclaimed,  "  Now  I  am  safe." 


IOI 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT   FOREST 

The  three  remained  thus  for  sometime,  feeling  sure 
that  so  they  were  safe.  At  last,  hearing  no  noise,  the 
turtle  peeped  out  slowly,  her  head  and  her  four  feet 
and  tail  issuing  from  her  shell.  The  ipi,  hearing  no 
noise,  unrolled  herself,  and  so  did  the  porcupine. 
Then  the  three  looked  at  each  other  and  wondered  at 
their  coats.  The  ipi  said  to  the  izomba,  and  to  the 
porcupine,  "  Do  not  be  afraid  of  me.  I  do  not  bite. 


I  have  no  teeth  and  feed  only  on  ants,  so  I  cannot  do 
you  any  harm." 

Next  the  porcupine  said  to  the  turtle  and  to  the 
ipi :  "  Don't  be  afraid.  I  am  a  rodent.  I  feed  on 
roots,  fruit,  and  nuts  which  I  find  on  the  ground.  It  is 
true  I  can  bite,  but  I  do  not  feed  on  blood  and  flesh  ; 
besides,  my  teeth  could  not  go  through  your  coats." 

Then  the  turtle,  looking  at  the  ipi  and  the  porcu 
pine,  said  :  "  Do  not  be  afraid.  I  am  enclosed  in  a 
hard  shell-like  coat  —  this  is  to  protect  me.  I  live 
chiefly  on  leaves.  I  can  bite  terribly,  but  how  could  I 
ever  bite  you  with  the  grand  coats  you  have." 

102 


NGOMBA  — IZOMBA— IPI 

But,  as  it  happened,  the  three  did  not  understand 
one  another,  for  each  had  a  different  language  which 
belonged  to  their  species.  They  kept  talking  never 
theless,  each  expressing  his  thoughts  in  his  own  way. 

The  ipi,  looking  at  the  big  scales  fastened  to  the 
shell  of  the  turtle,  wondered  why  they  could  not  move 
like  her  own,  and  thought  to  herself,  "  Strange  indeed 
is  the  coat  of  the  turtle."  She  also  wondered  at  the 
way  the  turtle  had  of  hiding  herself  under  her  shell, 
for  the  turtle's  head,  tail,  and  legs  would  now  and 
then  suddenly  disappear. 

The  porcupine,  in  the  mean  time,  was  examining  the 
coat  of  the  ipi  and  of  the  turtle.  Finally  he  said  to 
them  :  "  I  have  the  best  coat  of  you  all ;  when  I  make 
my  formidable  quills  stand  up,  no  one  dares  to  handle 
or  attack  me  or  tread  upon  my  body." 

Then  he  gave  a  great  porcupine  laugh  and  cried : 
"  Ipi  and  turtle,  monkeys  and  men  of  the  wood  can 
toss  you  about ;  njokoos  can  tramp  upon  you,  —  for 
though  your  coat  protects  you  it  does  not  sting,  pierce, 
or  hurt  like  mine.  You  are  harmless." 

After  a  while  all  three  went  on  their  way  to  get  their 
living,  each  thinking  his  coat  better  than  the  others'. 
It  happened  that  the  turtle  came  under  a  tree  where 
a  large  nshiego  (chimpanzee)  was  resting.  When  he 
saw  the  turtle  he  came  down  from  his  tree.  When 
the  turtle  saw  the  nshiego  come  toward  her,  she  drew 
her  head,  tail,  and  legs  under  her  shell,  for  she  was 
terribly  afraid.  It  looked  then  as  if  the  turtle  were 
dead. 

103 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

But  the  nshiego  had  seen  the  turtle  moving,  and 
wondered  what  it  was,  and  soon  the  poor,  frightened 
turtle  was  in  his  two  hands,  and  he  turned  her  over,  first 
on  one  side,  then  on  the  other,  tossed  her  around,  and, 
when  he  got  tired,  dropped  her,  and  went  away.  The 
poor  turtle  had  never  been  handled  in  that  way  before, 
and  was  so  scared  that  she  did  not  dare  to  peep  her 
head  out  of  her  shell  for  a  long  time  afterward,  when 
she  went  into  hiding  under  the  roots  of  a  big 
tree. 

The  nshiego  farther  on  met  the  porcupine,  who 
when  he  saw  the  nshiego  rolled  himself  up  and  put 
out  his  quills.  The  nshiego  came  up  to  him,  looked 
at  him  carefully,  and  said  to  himself:  "  I  am  afraid  of 
thee,  porcupine,  and  I  will  not  toss  thee  as  I  did  the 
turtle,  for  those  ugly-looking  quills  will  pierce  my 
hands  and  hurt  me  dreadfully.  I  am  afraid  of  them." 
And  he  went  his  way. 

Toward  evening  the  same  nshiego  saw  the  ipi  walk 
ing.  When  the  ipi  heard  the  nshiego,  she  rolled  her 
self  in  a  coil,  and  with  all  her  strength  made  the  coil 
as  tight  as  she  could.  Then  the  nshiego  came  toward 
her,  and  soon  the  ipi  was  in  his  hands.  He  played 
with  her,  tossed  her  about,  and,  when  tired,  dropped 
her  and  went  away. 

When  the  ipi  came  to  her  burrow,  she  told  her 
mate  all  the  things  she  had  seen  that  day,  of  the 
turtle  and  the  porcupine,  and  what  had  happened 
to  her  with  the  nshiego,  and  how  afraid  she  had 
been. 

104 


NGOMBA  —  IZOMBA  —  IPI 

When  the  porcupine  came  to  his  burrow,  he  told 
his  mate  of  the  strange  creatures  he  had  met,  of  the 
ipi  and  the  turtle,  and  said :  "  Dear,  I  met  also  a 
nshiego  who  stood  by  me  quite  a  while,  but,  thanks  to 
my  good  coat  of  quills,  he  did  not  dare  to  handle  me, 
as  I  saw  he  did  the  turtle  and  the  ipi." 


'05 


CHAPTER   XVI 

THE    NGOOBOO,    OR    HIPPOPOTAMUS 

ONE  day  a  big  ngooboo,  or  hippopotamus,  look 
ing  fondly  at  his  mate,  said  :  "  Dear,  what  a 
pleasant  home  we  have.  Our  shoal  is  surrounded  by 
deep  water.  We  swim  and  dive  around  it,  and  enjoy 
ourselves  in  the  broad  river.  The  animals  of  the 
forest  cannot  come  and  attack  us ;  the  water  is  too 
swift  for  the  crocodiles,  and  though  the  huge  njokoo 
loves  to  bathe,  he  does  not  dare  to  disturb  us,  for  he 
only  fights  on  land.  Even  if  he  did  attack  us,  we 
could  dodge  him  and  his  big  dangerous  tusks  by  div 
ing  and  remaining  under  the  water  out  of  his  sight, 
for  he  cannot  dive.  Besides  we  could  attack  him  and 
lacerate  him  with  our  big,  crooked,  hook-like  tusks." 

Then  he  laughed  in  the  fashion  of  the  ngooboos, 
opening  his  enormous  mouth  and  showing  his  tusks. 
"We  could  not,"  he  continued,  "have  chosen  a  better 
spot  for  a  home.  On  one  side  of  the  river  is  the  big 
forest,  on  the  other  is  the  extended  prairie,  where  we 
go  every  night  to  graze  and  enjoy  the  juicy  and  suc 
culent  grass,  unless  we  scent  danger  and  think  it  wiser 
not  to  leave  the  river,  in  which  case  we  have  to  dive 
and  eat  the  grass  growing  at  the  bottom." 

106 


THE    NGOOBOO,   OR   HIPPOPOTAMUS 

Looking  affectionately  at  Mrs.  Ngooboo,  he  then 
uttered  a  grunt  and  snort  which  meant,  "  I  love  you 
dearly."  He  admired  her  greatly.  He  thought  the 
rosy  gray  of  her  skin  was  the  most  beautiful  he  had 
ever  seen,  and  her  form  the  most  graceful  of  figures. 
The  ngooboos  believe  that  they  are  handsomer  than 
all  other  creatures,  and  that  their  ponderous,  clumsy 
bodies  and  short,  ugly  legs  are  very  lovely.  The 
ngooboos  are  in  nowise  more  conceited  than  all  the 
other  animals,  each  kind  thinking  itself  the  hand 
somest. 

One  of  the  peculiarities  of  the  ngooboos  is  that  each 
family  owns  its  shoal.  It  is  their  castle,  and  no  other 
ngooboo  is  allowed  to  land  there,  and  if  they  try,  there 
is  a  fight ;  but  when  in  the  water  they  are  friendly 
with  one  another.  Each  ngooboo  knows  his  own 
shoal. 

The  ngooboos  forming  the  colony  were  about  thirty 
in  number,  including  the  babies.  When  they  stood, 
or  were  lying  on  their  shoals,  their  heads  and  backs 
were  above  the  water,  and  their  bodies  looked  like 
huge,  stranded  logs.  Sometimes  at  a  certain  angle 
their  heads  looked  like  the  heads  of  horses,  hence 
the  white  people  call  them  hippopotami,  which  means 
river  horses. 

"  Do  you  remember,  dear,"  resumed  Mr.  Ngooboo, 
"  when  we  migrated  and  came  to  the  river  in  company 
with  two  other  couples  who  live  on  yonder  shoals  ? 
We  were  driven  from  our  former  homes  by  human 
beings  who  had  settled  on  the  far-off  prairie,  made 

107 


THE    WORLD    OF    THE   GREAT    FOREST 

traps  to  ensnare  us,  and  succeeded  in  capturing  several 
of  our  number.  At  last  we  did  not  dare  to  land  any 
more,  so  we  concluded  to  leave  the  place  and  emigrate 
to  some  other  country,  and  travelled  until  we  discov 
ered  this  beautiful  river  with  its  big  prairie.  Now  we 
have  prospered  and  increased  in  number,  for  this  land 
has  not  many  human  beings." 

"  I  remember  it  well,"  replied  Mrs.  Ngooboo,  look 
ing  fondly  at  her  mate,  coming  near  him  and  putting 
her  head  close  to  his.  Then  the  two  looked  at  their 


dear  little  baby,  who  was  very  tiny  and  only  a  few 
weeks  old,  and  thought  she  was  the  sweetest  little 
baby  ngooboo  they  had  ever  seen,  as  well  as  the  most 
beautiful.  She  had  such  lovely  eyes,  such  a  cunning 
little  mouth,  and  she  was  so  intelligent  for  her  age,  — 
in  a  word,  she  was  such  a  wonderful  baby  that  there 
was  no  other  little  ngooboo  like  her. 

The   big  ngooboo   here  took  a  plunge,  remaining 

108 


THE    NGOOBOO,   OR   HIPPOPOTAMUS 

under  water  for  a  while,  and  reappearing  on  the  surface, 
quite  a  way  off  from  his  shoal.  Then  he  called  to  his 
mate,  by  peculiar  grunts  and  snorts,  which  is  the  lan 
guage  of  the  ngooboos  :  "  Be  careful  of  our  baby,  for 
the  current  is  swift." 

Hearing  the  call  of  her  mate,  Mrs.  Ngooboo 
plunged  into  deep  water  and  swam  toward  him, 
watching  the  baby  carefully  all  the  while,  and  the 
baby,  when  tired,  would  come  gently  and  rest  on  the 
back  of  her  mamma,  who  was  delighted. 

In  a  short  time  they  were  by  the  side  of  Papa 
Ngooboo.  They  took  a  swim,  then  ascended  the 
river  to  their  shoals.  After  they  had  rested  a  while, 
Mr.  Ngooboo  said  to  his  mate :  "  Dear,  our  feet  are 
so  shaped  that  we  can  both  walk  on  land  and  swim. 
Our  straight  and  crooked  tusks  allow  us  to  get  the 
grass  at  the  bottom  of  the  river.  We  are  so  built 
that  we  can  stay  under  water  a  long  time." 

The  colony  of  ngooboos  had  a  good  time.  They 
would  play  in  the  water,  dive,  and  swim,  often  run 
after  one  another,  and  all  this  time  the  young  ones 
were  learning  the  wisdom  belonging  to  the  ngooboos. 

Once  in  a  while  a  troop  of  monkeys  who  were 
travelling  would  look  upon  the  ngooboos  from  their 
trees,  on  the  wooded  shores  of  the  river,  and  would 
say,  "  We  have  never  seen  such  an  ugly  creature  in 
our  lives." 

Watching  the  ngooboos  from  among  the  thick  trees 
lining  the  banks  of  the  river  were  the  small  yellow 
osengi  monkeys  with  their  long  tails,  and  their  bosom 

109 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE   GREAT   FOREST 

friends,  the  hornbills,  with  their  great  beaks  several 
inches  long. 

The  osengis  and  the  hornbills  are  great  chums  ;   in 
deed,   they   seem   to   be   inseparable.     So    that  when 


other  birds  of  the  for- 
<J  est  see  first  the  osengis, 
they  say,  the  hornbills 
are  near ;  if  they  see 
the  hornbills  first, 
they  say,  the  osengis 

are  not  far  off,  and  food  is  plentiful,  and  berries  and 
fruits  are  to  be  found ;  and  if  they  feed  on  these,  they 
say,  let  us  follow  them,  or  go  ahead  of  them. 

How  such  friendship  happens  to  exist  between 
these  two,  no  one  can  tell.  It  is  the  more  unselfish  in 
that,  though  they  eat  the  same  food,  they  never  seem 
to  quarrel  about  it.  Sometimes  the  osengi  would  dis 
cover  food  first,  sometimes  the  hornbills.  "  Kee, 
kee,"  the  osengis  would  often  say  plaintively  to  the 
hornbills,  as  they  followed  them ;  but  the  hornbills 
were  always  silent,  never  uttering  a  note,  because 


no 


THE   NGOOBOO,   OR   HIPPOPOTAMUS 

they  did  not  want  other  birds  to  know  where  they 
were. 

The  little  osengis  love  the  neighborhood  of  rivers, 
whose  banks  they  follow  in  their  wanderings  ;  they 
like  to  sleep  on  the  branches  spreading  over  the 
water.  When  birds  or  animals  see  them,  they  say 
gladly,  if  they  are  thirsty,  "Water  is  near,  for  we  see 
the  osengis." 

Every  evening  it  is  the  custom  of  the  ngooboos 
to  land  and  pasture  on  the  prairie ;  they  generally 
land  two  or  three  hours  after  the  sun  sets,  that  is, 
between  eight  and  nine  o'clock. 

At  such  times  there  is  a  great  deal  of  grunting  and 
snorting  among  them.  They  talk  to  one  another,  and 
each  snort  or  grunt  has  a  meaning.  The  ngooboos  are 
very  suspicious  when  they  go  on  shore,  for  they  do 
not  feel  at  home  on  land  as  they  do  in  the  water. 

Some  ngooboos  were  now  seen  ascending  and  de 
scending  the  river,  going  to  their  respective  landing- 
places,  for  they  are  accustomed  to  land  at  the  same 
spot  every  night  and  follow  the  path  they  have 
made. 

After  the  ngooboos  had  approached  their  landing- 
places,  they  swam  silently  to  and  fro,  to  see  if  they 
could  scent  any  danger.  Once  in  a  while  the  subdued 
snort  of  the  leader  was  heard,  saying,  "  Not  yet,  we 
must  wait  a  little  while.  We  must  make  sure  that 
the  coast  is  clear," 

At  last  a  very  peculiar  snort  was  heard  by  the 
followers  of  the  leader,  signifying,  "  Now  be  ready, 

in 


THE   WORLD    OF    THE   GREAT    FOREST 

we  are  going  to  land/'  And  all  the  ngooboos  swam 
silently  toward  him  after  they  heard  this. 

Then  the  old  leader,  who  had  led  them  many  a  time, 
landed,  and  entered  the  path.  Each  ngooboo  landed 
in  turn,  and  they  all  followed  him  in  single  file,  going 
to  the  place  where  they  pastured. 

One  of  the  great  faculties  possessed  by  the  ngooboos, 
as  well  as  by  most  if  not  all  the  ruminant  animals,  is 
that  they  can  see  as  well  during  the  night  as  they  do 
during  the  day. 

The  moon  had  just  risen,  and  threw  its  dim  light 
upon  the  ngooboos,  as  they  walked  silently  following 
their  leader,  their  huge  bodies  looking  strange  as  they 
walked  in  single  file.  They  appeared  like  super 
natural  creatures  wandering  in  the  prairie. 

The  mboyos  (jackals)  and  the  hyenas,  as  they 
scented  the  huge  creatures,  said,  "  Let  us  keep  out  of 
the  way  of  the  ngooboos,"  and  made  off.  After 
proceeding  a  few  miles,  the  ngooboos  reached  their 
browsing  place  of  the  day  before.  As  they  were  eat 
ing,  the  big  ngooboo,  their  leader,  gave  two  or  three 
gentle  snorts,  which  meant,  "  Look  yonder  far  away, 
there  is  a  herd  of  niares  [buffaloes]."  All  the  ngooboos 
looked  and  saw  the  buffaloes  and  said :  "  We  are  not 
afraid  of  the  buffalo ;  they  cannot  toss  us  in  the  air  as 
they  do  njegos  or  human  beings.  Next  to  the 
njokoos,  we  are  the  heaviest  and  biggest  creatures  of 
this  land.  Besides,  their  horns  are  so  placed  on  their 
heads  that  they  cannot  pierce  our  bodies.  We  are  not 
afraid  of  them,  for  their  way  of  fighting  is  to  charge 


112 


THE    NGOOBOO,   OR    HIPPOPOTAMUS 

and  toss.  If  these  buffaloes  dare  to  attack  us,  we  will 
lacerate  and  cut  their  bodies  with  our  crooked  and 
sharp  tusks." 

At  the  same  time  they  all  opened  their  mouths  and 
laughed.  Ugly  and  formidable  indeed  were  their 
tusks,  which  weighed  four  and  five  pounds  each. 
Then  they  gave  grunts  of  defiance  which  the  buffa 
loes  heard,  and  straightway  walked  off,  saying,  "  The 
ngooboos  are  coming  our  way,  but  we  can  run  faster 
than  they,  and  they  cannot  catch  us."  They  also 
laughed  in  their  turn  and  said,  "  Catch  us  if  you 
can,  ngooboos,  with  your  clumsy  bodies  and  short 
legs.  You  will  get  tired  before  we  do." 

The  ngooboos  continued  to  pasture,  enjoying  their 
night  meal.  That  night  the  grass  seemed  very  juicy 
and  good  to  them.  Suddenly  they  stopped  browsing. 
They  scented  danger.  They  looked  in  the  direction 
where  the  scent  came  from  and  saw  coming  from  a 
cluster  of  trees  a  large  herd  of  njokoos.  The  leader 
grunted,  saying  to  his  followers :  "  Here  are  the 
njokoos.  How  ponderous  and  powerful  they  are  ! 
How  small  we  are  compared  with  them  !  No  crea 
tures  possess  such  strength.  They  can  also  walk  or 
run  much  faster  than  we  can,  for  their  legs  are  longer 
than  ours.  Look  at  the  huge  tusks  of  some  of 
them." 

Soon  the  leader,  who  had  been  attentively  observing 

the  herd  of  elephants,  said  :  "  The  njokoos  are  coming 

our  way.     Let  us  go  back  as  fast  as  we  can  to  our 

river,  for  we  cannot  fight  the  njokoos  on  land;  they 

8  113 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

would  charge  and  pierce  us  with  their  big  tusks  and 
kill  us." 

"  Yes,"  said  all  the  ngooboos,  "  it  would  not  be 
pleasant  to  be  impaled  and  get  those  big  tusks 
between  our  ribs/' 

The  ngooboos  went  back  to  the  river  as  fast  as  they 
could,  their  leader  hurrying  them  on.  But  the  scent 
of  the  njokoos  became  stronger  and  stronger,  and  thus 
showed  the  ngooboos  that  the  njokoos  were  nearing 
them,  and  they  did  their  best  to  run  still  faster.  At 
last  they  came  to  the  river  and  plunged  into  its  water 
and  in  the  course  of  time  reached  their  different  shoals. 

There  they  felt  strong.  They  all  laughed  and  said, 
"  Now  we  are  at  home  in  the  water  and  can  fight  the 
njokoos."  But  they  added  sadly,  "  What  a  pity  that 
we  did  not  get  our  full  night  meal,  the  grass  tasted  so 
good ! " 

It  is  the  custom  of  the  ngooboos  living  in  this 
river  to  cross  the  prairie  and  bathe  in  the  Atlantic 
Ocean  two  or  three  times  a  year.  The  prairie  was 
bounded  on  one  side  by  the  river  and  on  the  other  by 
the  sea. 

One  day  it  was  agreed  among  all  the  families  of 
ngooboos  that  they  should  go  to  the  beach  the  follow 
ing  night,  and  enjoy  themselves  swimming  in  the  surf 
if  the  sea  was  not  too  rough.  So  when  night  came 
the  ngooboos  landed  and  began  their  journey  toward 
the  seashore. 

It  was  full  moon  and  the  journey  to  the  ocean 
was  made  without  mishaps.  One  family  after  another 

114 


THE    NGOOBOO,    OR    HIPPOPOTAMUS 

arrived  on  the  beach.  The  ngooboos  were  greatly 
excited.  They  talked  among  themselves.  There 
was  great  rejoicing  among  them.  They  sniffed  the 
sea  breeze  and  looked  at  the  surf  and  at  the  broad  sea 
before  them  and  wondered  why  there  was  not  a  shore 
on  the  other  side  as  on  the  river.  They  tramped 
around  on  the  beach  for  quite  a  while. 

Then  the  leaders  of  the  different  families  said  to  their 
followers,  "  Let  us  go  into  the  sea."  They  grunted 
and  snorted  on  the  way,  walked  slowly  through  the 
surf,  and  losing  their  footing  began  to  swim,  though 
they  did  not  dare  to  go  far.  They  grunted  loudly 
and  threw  water  several  feet  high  through  their 
nostrils,  as  they  did  on  the  river. 

They  had  a  grand  time.  How  they  enjoyed  their 
sea  bath  !  How  they  laughed  !  Their  loud  snorts 
and  grunts  were  heard  by  all  the  creatures  in  the 
neighborhood. 

After  they  landed,  they  said  to  each  other,  "  What 
fine  fun  we  had  in  the  sea  !  "  Then  they  went  to  the 
prairie  and  grazed,  and  enjoyed  their  meal  heartily. 
Gradually  they  wended  their  way  back  to  the  river, 
which  they  reached  toward  four  o'clock  in  the  morn 
ing,  when  each  family  went  to  its  shoal. 


CHAPTER    XVII 

A    FIGHT    FOR    MISS    NGOOBOO 

TIME  went  on,  and  Miss  Ngooboo  as  she  grew 
up    became    more    and    more    beautiful    and 
attractive   in  the  eyes  of  the  young   ngooboos. 

On  the  two  other  shoals  were  young  ngooboos  who 
fell  very  much  in  love  with  her.  They  would  come 
before  her  shoal,  swim,  dive,  give  snorts  or  grunts, 
telling- her  how  much  they  loved  her;  but  Papa  and 
Mamma  Ngooboo  watched  her  carefully  when  she 
would  go  out  to  swim  and  would  themselves  swim  be 
tween  her  and  her  two  admirers.  She  was  too  young 
yet,  the  old  folks  thought,  to  be  taken  away  from  them. 

Day  after  day  her  two  admirers  would  display  them 
selves  before  her,  show  her  how  they  could  dive  and 
swim,  each  trying  to  surpass  the  other  in  these  accom 
plishments.  Miss  Ngooboo  looked  at  them  com 
placently,  enjoying  the  fun.  But  before  very  long  the 
two  admirers  began  to  be  very  jealous  of  each  other, 
and  uttering  grunts  of  defiance  and  hatred,  dared 
each  other  to  'a  fight.  When  they  came  together 
in  swimming  they  would  look  at  each  other  fiercely 
and  say,  "  If  you  do  not  stop  coming,  I  will  give 
you  a  trouncing."  "  I  dare  you,"  would  answer  the 
other.  So  the  days  passed. 

116 


"  Then  ensued  a  terrible  fight  " 


A    FIGHT    FOR    MISS   NGOOBOO 

One  day  Miss  Ngooboo  seemed  to  show  preference 
for  the  one  whose  shoal  was  the  nearest  to  hers.  The 
rejected  rival  became  furious.  He  shouted  with  ter 
rific  and  angry  snorts  that  Miss  Ngooboo  was  to 
be  his,  and  that  he  would  fight  for  possession  of 
her.  The  other  said  he  would  do  likewise,  for  she 
was  to  be  his.  Both  went  back  to  their  shoals  full  of 
fight  and  hating  each  other  more  than  ever. 

The  next  day,  as  Miss  Ngooboo  was  on  her  shoal 
by  the  side  of  her  mamma  and  papa,  the  young  ngooboo 
admirer  that  was  her  neighbor  left  his  shoal  and  swam 
toward  her. 

When  his  rival,  who  was  watching  him  with  jealous 
eyes,  saw  this,  he  left  his  shoal  and  swam  toward  her 
also,  with  fight  in  his  eyes.  He  had  made  up  his  mind 
to  settle  the  quarrel  that  day  ngooboo  fashion,  and  de 
cide  by  single  combat  to  which  of  the  two  rivals  Miss 
Ngooboo  was  to  belong.  He  was  very  sly  and  swam 
under  the  water. 

His  rival  was  so  busy  making  love  to  Miss  Ngooboo 
that  he  had  not  seen  him  leave  his  shoal,  neither  did 
Miss  Ngooboo,  who  was  standing  on  her  shoal  by  the 
side  of  her  parents,  who  now  thought  she  was  big 
enough  to  attend  to  herself  and  choose  her  own  mate. 

Suddenly  there  surged  from  under  the  water  ngooboo 
number  two,  having  inflicted  a  severe  gash  with  his 
crooked  teeth  on  his  rival,  who  had  not  known  of  his 
presence  before  the  attack.  Then  ensued  a  terrible 
fight  for  the  possession  of  Miss  Ngooboo.  The  two 
ngooboos  rushed  at  each  other,  opening  their  huge  and 

117 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

hideous  mouths,  and  showing  their  crooked  tusks,  with 
which  they  inflicted  fearful  gashes.  Sometimes  one 
dodged  the  onslaught  by  diving,  then  the  other,  furi 
ous  at  missing  his  antagonist,  would  dive  and  pursue 
him  under  the  water,  and  there  a  great  fight  would 
take  place  which  no  one  could  witness.  Then  both 
would  reappear,  giving  grunts  of  rage  and  defiance. 

The  water  around  where  they  fought  was  a  mass  of 
white  foam.  There  was  great  excitement  among  all 
the  ngooboos  of  the  colony  at  the  sight.  Grunts  were 
heard  everywhere,  but  they  remained  neutral.  Miss 
Ngooboo,  from  her  shoal,  was  looking  on,  perfectly 
mute,  not  a  grunt  coming  from  her  mouth. 

Often  the  two  rivals  advanced  and  retreated,  watch 
ing  their  opportunity  to  strike  without  being  hurt  in 
return.  The  water  became  red  with  their  blood. 
After  a  long  and  terrible  fight  one  of  the  two  showed 
signs  of  fatigue.  His  body  was  fearfully  lacerated. 
At  last  he  fled,  swimming  and  diving  in  the  direction 
of  his  shoal,  pursued  by  his  enemy.  He  had  been 
thoroughly  vanquished. 

The  victor  returned  to  Miss  Ngooboo  and  ascended 
her  shoal,  and  was  received  by  the  old  folks  as  worthy 
of  the  hand  of  their  daughter.  After  this,  every  time 
his  vanquished  rival  saw  him,  he  fled  out  of  his  way. 

The  colony  of  ngooboos  had  increased  so  that  all 
the  shoals  were  taken.  The  young  couple,  seeing  that 
there  was  no  room  for  them,  decided  to  migrate  to 
some  other  part  of  the  river  or  to  some  other  country. 
So  they  bade  good-by  to  the  old  folks,  and  to  the 

118 


A    FIGHT    FOR    MISS   NGOOBOO 

other  ngooboos,  and  went  in  search  of  a  new  home. 
There  was  a  great  concert  of  grunts  when  they  said 
farewell. 

Ascending  the  river  they  searched  for  shoals,  but 
could  not  find  there  what  they  wanted.  At  night 
they  would  go  and  graze  on  the  prairie.  The  ngoo- 
boos  have  the  great  gift  of  scenting  water  a  long  way 
off.  As  they  found  no  home  on  the  river,  they 
entered  the  forest  and  crossed  some  small  rivers  and 
came  to  a  prairie,  where  they  scented  water.  They 
proceeded  toward  it,  and  after  a  while  beheld  a  beau 
tiful  little  lake,  at  which  they  were  greatly  delighted. 
Soon  after,  they  were  swimming  in  its  cool  water. 
There  were  no  shoals  in  the  lake,  but  its  shores  were 
not  abrupt ;  they  sloped  gently.  The  young  couple 
said  to  each  other  :  "  This  is  a  good  place  ;  let  us  settle 
here.  There  is  plenty  of  grass  around  us.  In  the 
water  we  shall  be  protected  during  the  day,  and  at 
night  we  shall  find  plenty  to  eat." 

The  next  day  they  saw  a  large  herd  of  elephants 
coming  toward  the  lake,  and  they  dived  under  the 
water.  The  njokoos  took  a  bath  and  went  away. 
Every  day  kambis  and  many  animals  came  to  drink, 
but  the  ngooboos  were  not  disturbed  by  the  sight. 

There  they  lived  happily  for  many  years  and  raised 
a  family  of  their  own. 


119 


CHAPTER   XVIII 

THE    FIVE    APES,    OR    MEN    OF    THE    WOODS 

ONE  day  it  came  to  pass  that  strange-looking 
apes,  called  by  the  human  beings  of  the  forest 
"  men  of  the  woods,"  came  to  the  same  part  of  the 
forest  to  find  food.  They  are  called  "men  of  the 
woods "  because  their  resemblance  to  human  beings 
is  striking.  They  are  very  ugly,  but  they  themselves 
think  they  are  very  good  looking,  —  in  fact,  the  hand 
somest  creatures  in  the  forest. 

These  men  of  the  woods  live  in  the  deepest  and 
gloomiest  part  of  the  great  forest,  for  they  shun  open 
places  and  the  presence  of  human  beings,  with  their 
noise.  The  different  species  or  varieties  are  called 
nginas,  nshiegos,  mbouves,  nkengos,  kooloo-kambas. 
Every  one  of  these  has  a  language  of  its  own,  distinct 
from  the  others. 

Their  ancestors,  like  themselves,  were  born  in  the 
forest  and  lived  in  it,  —  in  a  word,  the  men  of  the 
woods  had  lived  there  for  numberless  ages,  thousands 
and  thousands  of  years  ago.  The  reason  they  live 
in  the  great  forest,  and  cannot  live  in  any  other  part 
of  the  land,  is  because  they  subsist  on  fruit,  berries, 
nuts,  canes,  and  saplings,  and  these  are  found  all  the 

120 


FIVE   APES,   OR   MEN   OF   THE   WOODS 

year  round,  for  it  is  always  warm  in  the  country,  and 
the  fruit-bearing  trees  are  very  abundant. 

These  men  of  the  woods  never  kill  creatures  to  eat. 
They  roam  from  one  place  to  another  in  order  to  pro 
cure  a  living,  and  the  amount  of  food  consumed  in  a 
day  is  very  great.  They  have  the  same  gifts  as  the 
other  animals.  Having  a  good  memory,  they  know 
their  way  through  the  forest  and  dense  jungle,  and  the 
seasons  of  the  year  when  the  fruits  are  ripe  at  such 
and  such  a  place. 

The  male  ngina  is  the  most  powerful  of  all  the  men 
of  the  woods.  He  is  called  the  Giant,  the  Powerful. 
He  can  conquer  every  other  ape.  His  strength  is 
so  great  that  no  one  of  them  dares  to  attack  him. 
When  suddenly  surprised,  he  attacks  human  beings, 
and  with  terrible  muscular  arms  and  with  open  hand 
he  kills  them  by  a  single  blow.  His  strength  is  that 
of  about  twelve  strong  men  together. 

He  is  blacker  than  soot,  and  his  children  are  born 
as  black  as  he  is.  A  big  ngina  weighs  from  three  to 
four  hundred  pounds.  He  is  all  bones,  sinews,  and 
muscles.  His  body  is  covered  with  hair  not  very 
thick,  and  his  skin  is  almost  as  thick  as  that  of  an  ox. 
He  is  from  five  to  six  feet  in  height. 

The  nshiego  or  mbouve  averages  from  about  three 
feet  ten  inches  to  four  feet  four  inches  in  height,  and 
is  in  many  respects  a  stranger  creature  than  the  ngina. 
He  is  smaller  and  far  from  being  as  strong,  but  never 
theless,  in  a  hand-to-hand  fight  with  a  man,  the  latter 
would  not  have  the  slightest  chance,  and  would  be 

121 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

torn  to  pieces.  Man  without  weapons  is  very  weak 
and  helpless,  but  the  mbouve  never  attacks  man,  but 
flies  at  his  approach. 

The  nshiego  mbouve  is  bald-headed  when  adult, 
and  very  black,  with  a  body  thinly  covered  with  hair. 
But  a  wonderful  thing  is  that  though  the  parents  are 
very  black,  the  children  are  born  perfectly  white.  As 
the  young  mbouve  grows  older  his  complexion  gradu 
ally  changes,  the  white  color  gradually  tanning,  and 
then  becoming  darker  and  darker  until  finally  black 
patches  show  themselves  on  the  face,  and  at  last  he 
becomes  entirely  black  and  of  the  color  of  his  parents. 

The  nkengo  is  born  tan  yellow,  of  the  color  of  his 
parents,  and  remains  so  to  the  end  of  his  days.  He 
also  has  no  rosy  cheeks  and  never  blushes  or  becomes 
red  in  the  face,  no  matter  how  enraged  he  becomes. 
His  complexion  is  very  much  like  that  of  the  Moors, 
or  of  the  people  who  lie  on  the  sands  all  summer  on 
the  seashore.  He  attains  sometimes  a  height  of  four 
feet  and  a  half,  and  is  very  strong. 

The  nshiego,  or  the  common  chimpanzee,  is  born 
yellow,  but  gradually  turns  very  black  like  his  parents. 
He  is  about  the  same  size  as  the  nshiego  mbouve. 

The  kooloo-kamba  is  born  black  and  remains  so 
all  his  life.  He  is  a  strong-looking  creature.  He 
has  an  almost  round  head,  prominent  cheek-bones, 
large  ears  (a  characteristic  of  all  the  men  of  the 
woods),  and  is  about  the  size  of  the  nkengo. 

The  nshiegos,  the  mbouves,  the  nkengos,  the  koo- 
loo-kambas  have  long  arms,  big  ears,  elongated  hands 


122 


FIVE   APES,   OR   MEN   OF   THE   WOODS 

and  feet,  and  long  fingers,  thus  showing  that  a  great 
part  of  their  lives  is  spent  upon  trees. 

The  nginas,  on  the  contrary,  have  very  small  ears, 
broad,  powerful,  and  short  hands,  short  fingers,  thick, 
broad,  short  feet  of  great  strength  and  power  for 
grasping,  and  have  shorter  arms  than  all  the  other 
apes. 

All  the  apes  use  their  feet  as  hands. 

The  mbouves  and  the  nkengos  are  the  two  most 
intelligent  of  the  men  of  the  woods.  They  are  the 
only  ones  that  build  bowers  on  the  trees,  so  that 
they  can  say  they  have  a  home. 

The  ngina  is  by  far  the  fiercest  of  all  the  apes,  and 
builds  no  shelter  of  any  kind  whatever,  and  he  is  such 
a  huge  feeder  that  he  has  to  roam  through  the  forest 
more  than  all  the  other  apes. 


CHAPTER   XIX 

THE    NGINAS,    OR    GORILLAS,    AND    NJOKOOS,    OR 
ELEPHANTS 

A  HUGE  male  ngina,  or  gorilla,  was  standing  per 
fectly  still  one  day  in  a  very  dense  part  of  the 
forest.  He  was  thinking.  He  looked  fierce  and 
ugly.  His  intensely  black  face  was  furrowed  with 
deep  wrinkles.  Under  his  overhanging  brows,  his 
gray,  vindictive  eyes  seemed  to  flash  hate  and  ferocity. 
His  neck  was  so  short  that  his  head  appeared  set  on 
his  huge  broad  shoulders,  —  a  sign  of  his  herculean 
strength.  His  chest  was  so  broad  that  two  human 
beings  side  by  side  standing  behind  him  could  not 
have  been  seen.  His  belly  protruded,  his  arms  were 
of  immense  strength,  and  his  body  was  supported  by 
short,  flexible  muscular  legs  without  calves. 

Looking  down  finally  at  his  feet,  he  exclaimed, 
"With  these  I  can  clutch."  What  a  big  foot  he 
had  !  Then  he  stretched  his  long  muscular  arms  and 
looked  at  the  palms  of  his  hands,  which  were  as  hard 
as  horn,  then  at  his  callous  fingers  and  at  his  black  nails, 
and  muttered,  "  When  I  strike  with  these,  I  kill.  I 
break  the  ribs  of  creatures,  or  I  kill  them  outright, 
and  when  my  hands  hold  something,  nothing  is  power- 
fill  enough  to  take  it  away  from  my  clutches ; "  and 

124 


THE    NGINAS  AND    NJOKOOS 


he  grinned  and  looked  more  horrid  and  repulsive  than 
before. 

Then   he  beat  his  chest  with  his  great  fist.     The 

I25 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

sound  was  like  that  of  a  huge  partly  muffled  drum, 
for  his  chest  was  as  hard  as  wood.  To  try  his 
immense  strength,  he  went  to  a  tree  several  inches 
in  diameter  near  him,  and  seizing  it  with  both 
hands  and  feet  broke  it  in  two  as  if  it  had  been  a 
young  sapling.  He  was  delighted  when  he  saw  how 
strong  he  was,  and  gave  a  chuckle  of  satisfaction,  a 
horrid  one  peculiar  to  the  nginas. 

Looking  round,  he  saw  a  big  thigh-bone  of  a  very 
large  antelope,  which  had  been  devoured  by  a  njego. 
He  picked  it  up  and  crushed  it  into  splinters  between 
his  jaws,  which  have  more  power  than  those  of  a  lion. 
Then  he  gave  another  chuckle  of  satisfaction,  for  he 
saw  how  hard  he  could  bite  an  enemy. 

Then  he  yelled.  These  yells  sounded  somewhat 
like  the  barking  of  angry  dogs,  only  a  hundred  times 
louder.  They  were  followed  by  roar  after  roar,  which 
filled  the  great  forest  with  their  din  and  were  re-echoed 
from  hill  to  hill  until  they  sounded  like  distant  thunder. 

All  the  animals  and  birds  of  the  forest  were  filled 
with  fear  and  said,  "  The  huge  ngina  speaks.  No  one 
among  us  has  such  a  powerful  voice." 

These  roars  were  roars  of  defiance  with  which  he 
challenged  the  creatures  of  the  forest  to  come  and 
fight  him.  In  his  pride  he  thought  himself  the  ruler 
of  the  great  forest.  After  he  stopped  roaring  there  was 
a  great  silence.  All  the  animals  were  filled  with  fright. 

Suddenly  the  shrill  trumpeting  of  a  njokoo  was 
heard.  It  was  indeed  a  fearful  trumpeting,  a  trumpet 
ing  of  defiance.  It  meant:  "  I  am  not  afraid  of  you, 

126 


THE    NGINAS   AND    NJOKOOS 

ngina,  neither  of  your  yells  and  roars.  If  you  should 
ever  dare  to  attack  me  and  seize  my  trunk,  I  could 
crush  you  against  a  tree.  And  if  you  climbed  on 
my  back,  I  would  run,  and  the  branches  of  the  trees 
under  which  I  would  pass  would  make  short  work  of 
you."  After  the  challenge  of  the  njokoo  to  the  ngina 
came  another  silence.  It  was  soon  broken,  however. 
Once  more  the  ngina  gave  terrific  yells  and  roars. 
The  njokoo  at  the  same  time  repeated  his  ugly  trum 
peting.  Both  continued  for  some  time,  but  they  did 
not  come  together,  nor  even  in  sight  of  each  other. 

The  ngina  was  thinking  :  <c  No  creature  of  this  forest 
can  fight  the  njokoo.  Not  even  I  with  my  great 
strength  would  dare  to  attack  him,  for  though  I  can 
kill  a  leopard,  I  cannot  kill  a  njokoo.  If  he  comes  to 
attack  me,  I  can  climb  a  tree  which  he  cannot  uproot, 
and  from  there  I  can  dare  him  and  yell  and  roar  at 
him." 

After  a  while  the  njokoo  and  the  ngina  went  each 
his  own  way.  No  wonder  that  the  human  beings  of 
the  forest,  who  possess  only  spears  and  arrows,  are 
afraid  of  the  ngina  and  never  dare  to  attack  him. 
Woe  to  those  who  come  unexpectedly  upon  one,  for 
a  single  blow  from  the  hand  of  the  monster  would 
suffice  to  slay  a  man  ! 

The  ngina  wandered  through  the  forest  in  the  direc 
tion  of  his  mate  and  baby,  who  were  far  away.  They 
held  a  conversation,  though  they  were  several  miles 
apart,  and  when  they  met  they  greeted  each  other 
with  great  affection. 

127 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

The  big  ugly  creatures  looked  at  each  other  and  at 
their  baby  ngina,  and  once  in  a  while  gave  chuckles 
which  in  the  ngina  language  meant,  "  How  happy  I 
am  !  How  I  love  you  both  !  "  The  baby  ngina  was 
about  two  years  old  and  was  trying  to  break  with  its 
teeth  some  of  the  nuts  which  had  fallen  on  the  ground, 
but  his  jaws  were  not  yet  strong  enough  to  do  so. 
His  mouth  was  yet  too  small  for  nuts  of  such  a  size. 
Mamma  Ngina  came  to  his  help,  crushed  them  with 
her  powerful  jaws,  and  handed  the  pits  to  her  little 
one,  uttering  a  peculiar  sound  at  the  same  time,  which 
meant,  "  Here,  dear,  are  the  cracked  nuts.  Take 
them."  He,  in  return,  made  some  kind  of  noise  ex 
pressing  his  feelings,  which  might  be  translated,  "  I 
thank  you,  Mamma  Ngina." 

The  baby  ngina  was  just  beginning  to  learn  the 
language  of  the  nginas  from  his  father  and  mother, 
who  taught  him  to  speak,  and  he  was  making  good 
progress. 

As  the  nginas  were  enjoying  their  nuts,  they  were 
suddenly  disturbed  by  the  sharp  whistling  buzz  of  an 
ibolai  fly,  which  was  trying  to  alight  upon  their  bodies 
and  bite  them.  "  Bother  the  ibolai  fly  !  "  said  the  big 
ngina;  "it  bites  so  hard."  At  the  same  time  his 
eyes  were  watching  for  a  chance  to  catch  it,  but  the 
ibolai  was  so  quick  in  its  motion  that  he  could  not 
follow  it. 

The  ibolai  is  cunning,  and  succeeded,  unknown  to 
him,  in  getting  on  the  ngina's  back,  and  gave  him  a 
most  painful  bite.  The  pain  made  the  ngina  cry  out. 

128 


THE   NGINAS   AND    NJOKOOS 

At  that  very  time  a  fly  called  the  nchouna,  which 
makes  no  noise  at  all  and  which  is  very  cunning  and 
sly,  alighted  on  the  face  of  his  mate,  inserted  its  bill 
in  her  cheek  so  gently  that  she  did  not  feel  it,  and, 
after  having  had  its  fill  of  blood,  left  without  its  pres 
ence  being  known.  Soon  after,  the  itching  began, 
giving  at  times  sharp  stings  of  pain. 

"  Bother  the  nchouna  !  "  she  cried  angrily  ;  "  they  are 
so  sly  that  one  never  knows  when  they  alight  upon 
one  and  the  pain  is  only  felt  after  the  fly  has  left.  I 
wish  all  the  nchounas  were  dead." 

A  short  time  afterward  the  nginas  heard  a  sharp 
whistle  made  by  an  iboco  fly,  as  it  flew  round  them 
with  such  rapidity  that  their  eyes  could  not  follow  it  in 
its  course.  The  iboco  would  at  times  go  far  away 
and  then  come  back.  At  last  it  succeeded  in  alighting 
on  the  back  of  the  big  ngina,  who  suddenly  uttered  a 
howl  of  pain. 

"  What  is  the  matter,  dear  ?  "  inquired  her  mate. 

"  Don't  speak  of  it;  an  iboco  has  given  me  a  fearful 
bite.  These  ibocos  are  the  worst  flies  I  know  of. 
Let  us  get  out  of  the  way  of  the  nchouna,  the  ibolai, 
and  the  iboco,  and  go  into  the  thickest  part  of  the 
jungle.  There  they  will  have  no  room  to  fly  around 
us  in."  And  they  immediately  moved  into  the  thick 
jungle. 

After  they  were  comfortably  seated  in  the  jungle, 
the  big  ngina  said  to  his  mate :  "  We  have  to  roam 
continually,  far  and  wide  in  the  forest,  to  get  our  liv 
ing,  and  we  eat  so  much  every  day  that  we  cannot 
9  129 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

stay  long  in  one  place.  It  is  about  time  for  us  to 
travel  toward  the  land  of  pineapples.  These  must 
be  good  to  eat  now,  for  it  is  the  moon  of  thunder, 
great  heat  and  rain.  That  land  is  a  long  way  off,  but 
we  will  manage  to  get  a  living  as  we  journey  along. 
The  tondos  [a  red  fruit  growing  above  the  ground] 
are  plentiful,  and  we  shall  find  also  many  nuts." 

Toward  sunset,  when  it  was  time  for  the  nginas  to 
go  to  sleep,  they  came  to  a  fine  tree,  and  the  huge 
fellow  said  to  his  mate,  "  Here  is  a  good  place  for  us 
to  spend  the  night."  Then  Mamma  Ngina  ascended 
the  tree  with  her  baby  hanging  to  her,  and  seated  her 
self  on  a  heavy  cross  branch,  and  placed  her  back 
against  the  trunk  of  the  tree.  After  she  was  com 
fortably  settled,  she  looked  down  and  said  to  her 
mate,  "  I  know,  dear,  that  you  will  let  no  animal 
climb  this  tree,  even  if  it  is  a  njego,  and  that  you  will 
fight  to  the  death  to  protect  us,  for  we  do  not  fight." 

"  Surely,"  answered  her  mate,  with  roars  of  defiance, 
cc  I  will  protect  you  and  our  little  one." 

Then  he  made  himself  comfortable  on  the  ground, 
as  was  his  custom  every  evening,  at  the  foot  of  the 
tree,  where  his  mate  slept,  resting  his  back  against  the 
trunk.  That  night  their  sleep  was  much  disturbed, 
for  a  leopard  was  in  their  neighborhood.  He  was 
lonely  and  wanted  a  mate,  and  called  for  one,  but  he 
did  not  attack  them. 

At  dawn  they  left  their  sleeping-place,  and  going 
first  in  search  of  their  breakfast,  picked  berries,  nuts, 
and  fruits,  as  they  travelled  in  the  direction  of  the 

130 


THE    NGINAS   AND    NJOKOOS 

land  of  the  pineapples,  for  they  knew  the  way,  hav 
ing  been  there  before.  Sometimes  they  had  to  sepa 
rate  during  the  day,  as  there  was  not  food  enough 
for  them  all  in  any  one  place,  but  they  always  re 
mained  within  the  sound  of  one  another's  voices. 

That  evening,  before  they  went  to  sleep,  the  big 
ngina  said  to  his  mate :  "  To-morrow  we  will  travel 
fast.  Many  nginas  are  travelling  to  the  land  of  the 
pineapples,  as  we  are ;  and  if  we  are  late,  we  shall  find 
that  all  the  pineapples  have  been  eaten  up,  and  we 
shall  have  made  our  long  journey  for  nothing." 

Toward  dawn  they  were  awakened  by  the  cack 
ling  of  partridges  calling  for  their  mates.  But  it  was 
not  light  enough  for  them  to  start.  At  daybreak 
Mamma  Ngina  and  her  baby  came  down  from  their 
tree,  and  after  greeting  one  another  the  three  con 
tinued  their  journey  to  the  land  of  the  pineapples. 

They  passed  through  a  region  where  food  was 
scarce,  so  they  broke  saplings  of  certain  trees,  tearing 
the  outside  and  eating  the  heart,  that  was  very  juicy 
and  sweet,  and  the  baby  ngina  was  never  forgotten 
and  was  the  first  to  be  fed,  and  when  they  saw  a 
few  berries,  these  were  always  for  him. 

One  day  the  big  ngina  left  his  mate  and  baby 
and  wandered  through  the  forest.  After  a  while  he 
scented  leopards.  At  once  the  hair  on  his  body 
became  erect,  and  he  gave  terrific  yells  and  roars  of 
defiance.  When  he  came  to  the  lair  of  the  leopards, 
he  yelled  again,  but  the  leopards  were  out  seeking 
food  for  their  young.  Suddenly  the  big  ngina  became 


THE    WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT    FOREST 

silent,  for  his  eyes  were  trying  to  see  into  the  lair. 
Finally  he  made  out  three  little  baby  leopards  walking 
about,  and  with  one  of  his  huge  long  arms  he  seized 
one  and  flung  him  to  the  ground,  killing  him  in 
stantly.  Then  he  slew  the  two  others  in  the  same 
way  and  went  oflF  to  rejoin  his  mate  and  baby,  to 
defend  them  against  the  njegos,  should  the  latter  be 
prowling  near  them. 

Great  indeed  was  the  rage  of  the  leopards  when 
they  returned  and  saw  their  young  lying  dead,  but  by 
that  time  the  nginas  were  far  away. 

After  a  few  days*  journey  they  came  to  the  land 
of  the  pineapples,  which  extended  as  far  as  the  sea. 
Here  they  rejoiced  greatly,  and  said,  "  The  pineapples 
are  just  right.  We  have  come  in  good  time." 

The  pineapples  were  still  green  and  hard ;  but 
they  made  great  havoc  among  them.  The  big  ngina 
ate  at  least  a  barrel  full  without  stopping,  his  big 
stomach  sticking  out  as  if  he  had  swallowed  a  barrel 
itself.  Then  they  went  to  rest  in  the  thick  of  the 
forest,  for  where  pineapples  grow  in  abundance  the 
trees  are  not  thick,  and  the  nginas  do  not  like  to  spend 
the  night  in  such  exposed  places. 

The  next  morning  the  big  ngina  said  to  his  mate, 
"  To-day  let  us  change  our  food.  Let  us  go  after  nuts, 
for  we  shall  be  sick  if  we  eat  pineapples  day  after  day." 

They  found  trees  with  plenty  of  nuts  on  that  day, 
and  stopped  only  when  they  could  not  eat  any  more. 
The  following  day  they  went  back  to  the  pineapple 
land,  and  there  met  a  number  of  nginas  who  had  come 

132 


THE   NGINAS   AND    NJOKOOS 

to  feast  on  the  fruit.  And  as  there  was  plenty  of 
food  for  all,  there  was  no  quarrelling,  and  the  younger 
nginas  made  love  to  those  who  were  not  mated. 

After  a  few  days  the  nginas  began  to  get  very  fat. 
They  approached  the  sea  and  wondered  what  the  con 
stant  booming  was.  At  first  they  were  shy,  but  as 
the  booming  continued,  their  fear  left  them,  and  they 
walked  toward  the  Atlantic.  Pineapples  were  still 
plentiful  even  near  the  shore.  They  looked  thought 
fully  at  the  big  sea.  What  they  thought  only  them 
selves  knew. 

After  leaving  the  land  of  the  pineapples,  the  three 
nginas  wandered  through  the  forest,  and  got  far  away 
from  the  sea.  At  times  they  had  trouble  to  find  food 
with  which  to  satisfy  their  hunger,  and  had  to  go  dur 
ing  the  day  through  large  districts  of  the  forest  to  seek 
it,  and  many  a  time  they  went  to  sleep  hungry  and 
with  their  big  stomachs  much  shrunken.  They  had 
to  separate  during  the  day  after,  and  each  went  in 
search  of  food  for  himself,  and  before  sunset  they 
met  again.  Sometimes  when  one  of  them  came  to 
a  spot  where  food  was  abundant,  he  would  call  the 
others  to  come,  telling  of  the  lucky  find. 


'33 


CHAPTER   XX 

THE    NGINAS    TRAVEL    TO    A    PLANTAIN    FIELD  ; 
THEIR    STRANGE     ADVENTURES 

ONE  day  the  big  ngina  said  to  his  mate :  "  Dear, 
do  you  remember  the  large  field  of  plantain- 
trees  that  we  discovered  last  rainy  season  ?  The  trees 
must  be  big  now  and  bearing  fruit.  How  juicy  must 
be  the  large  bunches  they  bear  !  It  is  about  time  for 
us  to  travel  toward  them.  Oh,  what  a  feast  we  will 
have  !  "  his  face  showing  joy  at  the  prospect,  for  he 
fancied  he  was  already  in  the  field  and  eating  the  suc 
culent  plantains.  Of  all  the  fruits  growing  in  the 
forest,  the  ngina  likes  the  plantain  best. 

"  We  shall  have  to  hurry  on  our  journey,"  said  the 
big  fellow,  "lest  the  njokoos  get  to  the  place  be 
fore  us." 

So  the  following  morning  they  departed,  the  baby 
ngina  walking  close  to  his  mother.  They  knew  the 
way  to  the  plantain  field. 

It  was  the  height  of  the  rainy  season,  and  tornadoes 
were  common,  and  these  were  followed  by  very  heavy 
rains,  accompanied  by  terrific  thunder  and  lightning. 
"  The  plantain-trees/'  said  the  ngina  to  his  mate, 
"  are  a  long  way  off,  and  if  the  huge  njokoos,  who  are 

134 


THE   NGINAS'   ADVENTURES 

such  great  eaters,  reach  the  place  before  we  do,  they 
will  eat  everything,  and  we  shall  have  made  our  jour 
ney  in  vain.  Let  us  hurry  as  fast  as  we  can,  so  as  to 
be  there  before  their  arrival,  for  the  njokoos  ramble 
far  and  wide  in  the  forest,  and  some  of  them  may 
have  discovered  the  place  also."  So  they  started  on 
their  journey. 

The  nginas  met  with  many  adventures  on  their 
way  to  the  plantain  fields  that  day.  Toward  sun 
set  it  began  to  rain  very  hard,  and  there  was  heavy 
thunder  and  sharp  lightning.  Soon  they  came  to  a 
place  where  they  saw  three  huge  boulders  close  to 
gether,  and  these  were  sheltered  by  the  thick  foliage 
of  a  large  tree.  The  two  nginas  looked  at  each  other, 
saying :  "  This  is  a  good  place  to  be  in  for  the  night. 
We  will  sleep  under  this  tree."  They  set  their  backs 
against  one  of  the  large  boulders,  and  the  baby  ngina 
went  to  sleep  in  the  lap  of  his  mother.  The  rain 
dropped  heavily  from  the  leaves  upon  them.  They 
slept  with  their  heads  hanging  down  on  their  chests. 
Their  sleep  was  very  light,  and  the  falling  of  a  leaf 
would  have  waked  them.  Besides,  they  were  on  the 
lookout  for  njegos,  snakes,  and  other  creatures. 

When  the  morning  came  they  saluted  each  other. 
The  big  fellow  came  close  to  his  mate,  and  uttered 
certain  sounds  which  meant,  "  Dear,  I  Jove  you." 
Then  he  extended  his  long  arm  and  petted  his  little 
one,  and  soon  they  started  again  on  their  journey 
to  the  plantain  field.  Nothing  unusual  happened. 
They  met  two  or  three  omembas  (snakes)  and  some 


THE   WORLD   OF   THE   GREAT   FOREST 

kambis  (antelopes),  and  found  enough  to  eat  to  satisfy 
their  hunger. 

When  evening  came,  they  saw  a  fine  large  tree, 
where  the  little  ngina  and  his  mother  could  rest 
comfortably.  Both  ascended  the  tree,  and  the  old 
fellow  slept  at  the  foot.  Toward  midnight  there 
was  a  great  thunderstorm,  the  rain  fell  in  torrents, 
the  claps  of  thunder  were  incessant,  and  the  light 
ning  was  most  vivid,  and  after  one  terrific  clap  of 
thunder,  a  vivid  flash  pierced  through  the  forest, 
and  the  thunderbolt  struck  the  tree  next  to  theirs. 
The  nginas  gave  a  terrific  yell  of  alarm.  They 
fled,  and  wandered  about  in  the  darkness,  for  they 
could  not  see  their  way  well.  Suddenly  the  big 
ngina  stepped  on  a  huge  python  and  gave  another 
yell ;  but  before  the  serpent  could  attack  him,  he 
gave  him  a  terrible  bite  and  killed  him.  Ere  long 
they  found  another  good  tree  for  sleeping  in,  and 
ascended  it  for  the  rest  of  the  night. 

They  were  delighted  when  morning  came.  "  What 
an  awful  night  we  have  had !  "  the  old  fellow  said  to 
his  mate.  "  That  is  the  first  time  in  my  life  that  I 
have  seen  lightning  strike  so  near  us.  We  have  nar 
rowly  escaped  with  our  lives." 

In  the  course  of  the  day  they  came  to  a  part  of 
the  forest  where  the  ground  was  soft.  The  big  ngina 
saw  the  footprints  of  a  njego.  At  this  sight  his  hair 
stood  erect  on  his  body,  this  being  a  sign  of  fear  and 
anger.  Looking  at  his  mate,  he  said,  "  Here  are  the 
footprints  of  a  njego."  Then  both  inspected  them 

136 


gave  him  a  terrible  bite  " 


THE    NG1NAS'  ADVENTURES 

closely  and  she  said,  "  We  must  be  careful  to-night, 
for  the  njego  makes  such  tremendous  leaps  that  one 
is  never  sure  of  his  life/* 

It  happened  that  the  njego  was  famished  on  that 
day,  and  left  his  lair  before  the  night  had  come,  to 
prowl  in  the  forest  in  search  of  prey,  for  the  leopard 
can  see  in  the  daytime,  though  he  sees  much  better 
at  night.  The  big  ngina,  who  was  on  a  tree  busy 
eating  fruit,  suddenly  saw  the  njego  coming  toward 
his  tree.  At  this  sight  his  hair  became  erect  again, 
his  eyes  showing  some  fright  at  first,  but  he  recovered 
himself  speedily,  and  soon  they  looked  full  of  anger. 
He  remained  silent  and  waited  for  the  leopard  to 
pass  under  his  tree.  He  had  not  to  wait  long,  and 
then,  quick  as  an  arrow,  he  fell  upon  the  njego's  back 
and  with  one  of  his  powerful  vise-like  feet  seized 
the  nape  of  the  leopard's  neck  with  such  force,  hold 
ing  it  down,  that  the  leopard  could  not  move  his 
head,  and  with  his  other  foot  on  his  back  near  his 
tail  he  held  his  body  on  the  ground.  Then  he  gave 
a  quick  jerk,  stretched  the  body  of  the  njego,  and 
broke  his  spine.  The  njego  gave  a  terrific  scream, 
a  few  groans,  and  was  dead. 

The  ngina  dropped  the  njego  from  his  clutches, 
looked  fiercely  at  his  body,  and,  seated  on  his  haunches, 
gave  several  yells,  and  with  open  hands  struck  it  with 
tremendous  force,  breaking  some  of  the  ribs  and 
severing  the  body  almost  in  two.  While  he  was 
doing  this,  his  mate  appeared  with  their  baby  ngina. 
At  the  sight  she  uttered  a  fearful  scream,  and 


THE   WORLD   OF   THE   GREAT   FOREST 

the  little  fellow,  full  of  fear,  climbed  into  a  small 
tree. 

The  following  morning,  as  they  were  enjoying  a 
breakfast  of  nuts,  suddenly  they  heard  a  great  crash 
through  the  jungle.  A  herd  of  elephants  was  com 
ing  toward  them.  Forthwith  they  ascended  a  tree, 
and  soon  after  the  njokoos  passed  near  them.  When 
they  were  gone,  the  nginas  said :  "  These  njokoos  are 
not  going  our  way.  They  are  going  in  an  opposite 
direction  and  are  foraging.  It  is  a  good  thing  they 
know  nothing  about  our  plantain  field ;  if  they  did, 
we  should  find  no  plantains  upon  our  arrival  there." 
That  very  same  afternoon,  they  saw  a  huge  omemba 
(snake)  coiled  round  a  tree  and  looking  them  steadily 
in  the  face.  The  big  ngina  at  the  sight  gave  a  tremen 
dous  yell  of  anger,  but  he  and  his  family  passed 
safely  by. 

They  continued  their  journey  and  came  to  a  river. 
Some  kambis  on  the  opposite  shore  were  drinking. 
As  they  raised  their  heads,  they  saw  the  nginas  and 
said :  "  The  nginas  are  not  among  our  enemies,  for 
they  do  not  live  on  blood,  and  we  do  not  eat  the 
same  kind  of  food.  We  need  not  be  worried,  anyhow, 
for  nginas  do  not  swim  across  rivers."  Whereupon 
the  kambis  went  their  way  in  peace  and  unconcerned. 


138 


CHAPTER   XXI 

THE    NJOKOOS,    OR    ELEPHANTS,    TRAVEL    TO    THE 
PLANTAIN    FIELD 

NOW  the  very  day  the  nginas  had  departed  for 
the  plantain  field,  a  number  of  njokoos,  form 
ing  a  big  herd,  said  among  themselves  :  "  At  the 
beginning  of  the  last  rainy  season,  we  passed  a  part 
of  the  forest  where  there  were  a  great  many  plantain- 
trees.  By  this  time  they  must  be  bearing  big  heavy 
bunches  of  plantains.  These  must  be  juicy  and  good 
to  eat  now."  The  njokoos  trumpeted  all  at  the  same 
time,  "  Yes,  let  us  go  and  travel  there  at  once,  for 
we  all  like  plantains." 

This  was  the  very  same  plantain  field  of  which  the 
three  nginas  had  spoken,  and  toward  which  they 
were  journeying.  Then  the  leader  of  the  herd,  with 
his  little,  cunning  eyes,  said  :  "  Let  us  start  at  once. 
We  will  even  travel  at  night  for  fear  that  other  njokoos 
might  reach  the  place  before  us,  and  we  should  then 
find  everything  eaten  up  on  our  arrival." 

When  the  elephants  heard  their  leader  talk  in  that 
way,  they  became  very  excited,  swayed  their  bodies 
from  side  to  side,  flapped  their  large  ears  against  their 
heads,  and  uttered  shrill  trumpetings  that  filled  the 
forest  and  meant  in  the  njokoo  language,  "  Let  us 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE   GREAT    FOREST 

hurry  up  for  fear  other  njokoos  may  be  ahead  of  us, 
and  when  we  arrive  we  shall  find  that  they  have  eaten 
up  everything." 

The  njokoos  have  a  great  advantage  over  the 
nginas.  They  can  travel  at  night  as  well  as  in  the 
day ;  but  the  nginas,  like  the  human  beings,  the  mon 
keys,  and  other  day  creatures,  have  to  sleep  at  night. 
So  the  elephants  started  on  their  journey  to  the  plan 
tain-trees  in  a  hurry,  and  trampled  the  jungle  under 
their  feet,  broke  many  saplings  that  came  in  their 
way,  and  left  a  big  track  behind  them. 

They  travelled  at  a  great  rate,  and  many  miles  a 
day,  for  their  aim  was  to  reach  the  plantain  field 
before  any  one  else.  They  kept  on  night  and  day, 
crossing  mountains  and  swimming  through  rivers,  and 
it  was  sometimes  hard  travelling,  for  they  had  to  avoid 
bogs  and  parts  of  the  forest  filled  with  thorny  cane. 

At  last  the  njokoos  reached  the  promised  land. 
One  day  at  noon  they  came  to  the  plantain  field. 
Great  indeed  was  their  joy  when  they  saw  the  plantain- 
trees  loaded  with  heavy  bunches  of  big,  juicy,  green 
fruit.  They  all  uttered  trumpetings  of  gladness. 
The  chief  of  the  herd  felt  quite  proud  to  have  led 
them  to  the  place.  It  did  not  take  long  for  the  whole 
herd  to  be  in  the  middle  of  the  plantain-trees.  They 
committed  great  havoc.  Not  one  of  the  njokoos 
made  any  noise  at  this  time,  for  fear  they  should  be 
heard  by  other  njokoos,  and  thus  betray  their  presence 
in  the  plantain  field. 

When  they  could  not  eat  any  more  plantains,  they 

140 


TRAVEL   TO   THE   PLANTAIN    FIELD 

retired  into  the  forest,  for  they  felt  safer  in  the  thicket 
of  the  jungle. 

The  next  night  the  leader  of  the  herd  trumpeted 
for  the  elephants  to  assemble  and  get  ready  to  go  to 
the  plantain  field.  The  njokoos  understood  different 
trumpetings  just  as  soldiers  understand  the  meanings 
of  the  different  sounds  of  the  bugle.  All  came  round 
their  chief,  who  took  the  lead,  and  they  walked  toward 
the  plantain  field,  just  as  the  moon  rose  over  the 
forest;  the  huge  creatures  could  be  seen  destroying 
the  trees,  tearing  them  down  and  eating  the  fruit;  and 
then,  when  their  hunger  was  satisfied,  they  returned 
to  the  thick  of  the  forest. 

After  four  days  there  was  not  a  plantain-tree  stand 
ing,  and  as  they  left  their  trumpeting  was  joyous. 
They  were  laughing  and  saying:  "The  njokoos  and 
nginas  will  find  nothing  if  they  come.  We  have 
eaten  everything.  We  only  play  the  same  trick  that 
other  njokoos  have  played  on  us.  How  many  times 
have  we  come  to  a  place  when  it  was  too  late!"  Say 
ing  this,  they  disappeared  in  the  forest. 

The  very  same  day  the  njokoos  left,  the  nginas 
in  their  turn  approached  the  plantain  fields,  the  old 
ngina  saying  to  his  mate,  "  Let  us  be  careful,  for  we 
are  coming  where  there  is  no  forest."  They  walked 
slowly,  and  now  and  then  would  raise  themselves  erect 
to  see  if  there  was  any  danger.  When  they  reached 
the  plantain  field,  the  njokoos  had  just  gone. 

To  their  disgust,  disappointment,  and  dismay  they 
saw  that  the  njokoos  had  been  there  before  them, 

141 


THE   WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

that  the  trees  were  all  down,  and  that  there  was  not 
a  bunch  of  plantains  left. 

"  The  njokoos  have  been  here,"  shouted  the  big 
ngina,  in  a  rage,  and  gave  vent  to  roar  after  roar.  His 
mate  did  likewise.  Then  he  said  to  her,  "  These 
horrid  njokoos  have  not  even  left  a  tree  standing. 
They  have  eaten  our  plantains."  For  the  ngmas 
thought  these  plantains  belonged  to  them.  The 
njokoos  had  thought  likewise.  The  big  fellow  was 
so  disappointed  and  angry  that  he  repeated  again  and 
again  his  roars  of  rage  and  defiance.  He  was  ready 
to  fight  anything  he  met. 

The  njokoos,  who  were  not  yet  far  away,  heard  him, 
and  laughed  among  themselves,  and  trumpeted  back : 
"  We  are  not  afraid  of  you,  nginas.  You  dare  not 
come  and  attack  us.  We  are  the  ones  who  have 
eaten  all  the  plantains." 

So  the  nginas  left  the  place  with  empty  stomachs, 
and  feeling  in  a  very  bad  humor  against  the  njokoos 
They  had  hardly  left  when  another  herd  of  njokoos, 
who  also  knew  of  the  place,  made  their  appearance, 
and  when  they  saw  the  plantain  field  destroyed,  they 
trumpeted,  "We  are  too  late.  Other  njokoos  have 
been  here  before  us,"  and  they,  too,  went  away  feel 
ing  not  in  the  best  of  humor.  And  soon  after  their 
departure  some  other  nginas  also  familiar  with  the 
place  appeared  on  the  field,  and  when  they  saw  its 
devastated  condition,  they  too  were  disappointed,  and 
departed,  saying  to  one  another,  "  We  are  too  late. 
We  are  too  late." 

142 


XXII 

ARRIVAL    OF    THE    HUMAN    BEINGS    WHO    OWN    THE 
PLANTAIN     FIELD 

IT  so  happened  that  the  plantain  field  which  the 
njokoos  had  destroyed  had  been  planted  by 
human  beings  who  were  cannibals.  They  were  great 
hunters,  very  brave  and  fierce,  knew  the  use  of  fire 
arms,  and  had  guns  with  which  they  shot  many 
njokoos.  It  was  the  custom  of  these  men  to  have 
their  plantations  hidden  in  the  forest  and  far  away 
from  their  villages.  Many  of  these  were  so  far  off  that 
a  day's  journey  was  necessary  for  them  to  go  and 
come  back  with  a  load  of  plantains  on  their  backs. 
It  was  hard  work  for  these  men  of  the  forest  to  make 
a  plantation,  for  they  had  first  to  fell  the  forest  trees, 
and,  when  partly  dry,  to  set  fire  to  them,  and  then  to 
plant  the  shoots. 

Two  days  after  the  njokoos  had  left,  some  of  the 
women  of  the  tribe  to  whom  the  field  belonged, 
came  to  get  plantains  to  take  back  with  them  to  feed 
their  people.  When  they  saw  that  all  the  plantain- 
trees  had  been  torn  down,  and  the  fruit  devoured,  and 
witnessed  the  havoc  the  njokoos  had  wrought,  they 
exclaimed,  "  The  njokoos  have  been  here  and  eaten 
up  everything.  What  shall  we  do  to  feed  our  fami- 


THE    WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT    FOREST 

lies  ? "  They  also  saw  the  footprints  of  nginas  and 
were  filled  with  fear.  They  started  for  their  village 
in  great  haste,  making  loud  noises  to  scare  the  mon 
sters  off. 

On  their  return,  as  they  entered  their  village,  they 
shouted  :  "  Listen  ;  the  njokoos  are  near  our  planta 
tions.  They  have  already  destroyed  one  of  them,  and 
eaten  up  everything,  and  if  they  are  not  driven  away 
we  shall  be  hungry  in  days  to  come,  for  they  will 
destroy  other  fields  of  plantains." 

There  was  great  excitement  among  the  human  be 
ings  when  they  heard  the  doleful  news.  They  shouted: 
"  The  hard  work  we  had  to  cut  these  trees  and  make 
this  plantation  has  been  all  for  nothing."  The  war 
riors  and  hunters  swore  vengeance,  and  vowed  to  kill 
all  the  njokoos  and  nginas  they  could  find. 

Many  people  started  for  their  plantation  to  stay 
until  they  had  driven  all  the  njokoos  and  nginas  from 
their  country,  and  took  their  guns  and  their  tom-toms 
with  them.  When  they  arrived  there,  they  made  a 
great  noise,  fired  guns,  beat  their  tom-toms,  danced 
and  sang  all  night,  and  made  invocations  to  their  idols 
and  their  forefathers.  Five  of  the  most  valiant  hunters 
swore  that  they  would  not  go  back  home  until  they 
had  killed  some  nginas  or  njokoos. 

They  built  sheds  to  sleep  under.  When  the  nginas 
and  the  njokoos  heard  the  noise  they  made,  they 
moved  away  in  all  haste,  and  soon  the  country  was 
free  from  them. 


144 


CHAPTER  XXIII 

THE    THREE    NGINAS    KILLED    BY    HUNTERS 

A  FEW  days  after  their  departure  from  the  plan 
tain  field,  the  three  nginas  found  themselves 
in  a  part  of  the  forest  where  food  was  scarce. 

One  evening  the  old  ngina  said  to  his  mate  :  "  We 
have  had  a  hard  time  of  late,  and  our  little  one  is 
often  hungry.  We  go  to  sleep  with  empty  stomachs. 
Let  us  go  back  to  that  part  of  the  forest  from  which 
the  human  beings  drove  us  by  their  noise.  Perhaps 
we  shall  discover  more  plantain  fields  in  the  neighbor 
hood  that  we  have  not  yet  seen." 

Early  the  following  morning  they  started  back. 
They  found  the  way  easily,  though  they  took  a  some 
what  different  course,  so  that  they  could  find  food. 

After  some  wanderings,  the  nginas  came  to  a  koola- 
tree,  and  many  of  its  nuts  were  ripe  and  had  fallen  on 
the  ground.  At  this  sight  they  uttered  chuckles  of 
delight,  and  said,  "  It  is  a  good  thing  that  the  ngoas 
[wild  boars]  have  not  been  here  else  we  would  have 
found  no  nuts."  And  soon  they  were  busy  crushing 
their  hard  shells. 

The  koola  nut  is  larger  than  a  walnut,  and  the 
shell  is  very  hard.  The  kernel  is  about  the  size  of  a 
very  big  cherry.  They  cracked  one  nut  after  another 
10  145 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT   FOREST 

between  their  powerful  jaws,  and  each  time  they 
crushed  one  there  was  a  great  noise,  for  these  nuts  are 
so  hard  that  a  man  has  to  give  a  very  heavy  blow 
with  a  big  stone  to  crack  them ;  for  men  also  eat 
these  nuts.  They  did  not  forget  their  little  one,  but 
cracked  many  nuts  for  him,  for  he  had  only  his  first  set 
of  teeth,  twenty  in  number,  and  these  were  not  strong 
enough  to  crack  shells. 

The  nginas,  as  they  ate,  would  say  :  "How  deli 
cious  are  the  koola  nuts  !  How  lucky  we  are  to  be 
the  first  here  !  "  and  they  grinned  when  they  thought 
of  their  good  fortune.  How  ugly  they  looked  when 
they  grinned  I  Their  faces  were  simply  fiendish. 

When  they  had  eaten  all  the  nuts  that  had  fallen 
on  the  ground,  they  looked  up  at  the  koola-tree,  but 
could  not  see  its  top  on  account  of  the  thick  foliage 
of  the  trees  under  it.  Seeing  its  huge  trunk  (about 
fifteen  feet  in  diameter),  they  said,  "  What  a  pity  the 
koola-trees  are  so  tall  and  big !  We  cannot  climb  the 
trunk,  and  reach  the  nuts."  After  their  meal,  they 
continued  on  their  way,  and  when  night  came  they 
went  to  sleep  in  the  usual  ngina  way. 

Time  passed,  and  at  last,  as  they  approached  the 
plantain  field  the  njokoos  had  destroyed,  and  where 
they  themselves  had  been,  they  became  exceedingly 
cautious.  The  big  ngina  and  his  mate  would  stand 
up  as  human  beings  do,  and  look  around  and  listen, 
their  ugly,  wrinkled,  intensely  black  faces  peering 
through  the  trees  to  see  if  there  were  any  danger 
threatening  them. 

146 


NGINAS    KILLED    BY    HUNTERS 

Once  the  big  ngina  thought  he  scented  something 
hostile,  and  looked  toward  his  mate,  for  often  the 
nginas  have  a  silent  way  of  communicating  with  each 
other.  Then  they  stood  still  for  a  while.  After  they 
had  made  sure  there  was  no  cause  for  alarm,  they 
continued  on  their  way,  but  became  more  and  more 
wary.  They  heard  a  noise  and  stopped ;  but  it  was 
only  a  troop  of  monkeys  journeying  through  the 
forest. 

Finally  they  came  to  the  destroyed  plantain  field, 
and  passed  through  it  to  go  to  the  forest  beyond. 
They  were  more  timid  than  ever,  on  account  of  the 
lack  of  shelter  from  the  trees.  On  their  way  they  saw 
two  of  the  sheds  that  had  been  built  by  the  human 
beings.  They  looked  at  them,  and  noticed  a  heap  of 
ashes,  the  remains  of  a  fire,  and  three  burning  embers 
in  the  midst  of  the  ashes.  They  thought  they  were 
tondos,  the  red  fruit  that  grows  near  the  ground,  for 
which  the  nginas  have  a  great  fondness,  thinking  they 
are  a  delicious  fruit.  The  embers  looked  like  them, 
and  yet  again  did  not  look  exactly  like  them. 

So  they  seated  themselves  on  their  haunches  by  the 
pile  of  ashes,  and  kept  wondering  if  these  red  dying 
embers  were  tondos.  The  big  ngina  at  last  stretched 
out  his  long  arms  and  took  one  of  the  embers  in  his 
hands.  He  dropped  it  instantly,  and  uttered  a  terrific 
yell  of  rage,  and,  with  glaring  eyes,  looked  at  the 
embers  and  jumped  around.  His  mate  asked,  "  Dear, 
what  is  the  matter?  Why  do  you  yell  in  such  a  man 
ner  ?  "  The  big  ngina  replied,  "  That  red  thing  is  not 


THE   WORLD   OF   THE   GREAT   FOREST 

a  tondo.  I  took  hold  of  it,  and  it  felt  as  if  I  had  a 
handful  of  bees  or  wasps."  Then  he  fearlessly  raised 
his  arm  and  gave  a  great  blow  with  his  open  hand  to 
the  pile  of  ashes,  and  sent  them  and  the  embers  flying 
about. 

Farther  on  they  discovered  a  cluster  of  plantain- 
trees  bearing  big  bunches  of  juicy  fruit.  They  were 
filled  with  delight  at  the  sight.  Soon  they  were  busy 
pulling  the  trees  down,  by  grasping  the  base  of  the 
stem  with  their  two  hand-like  feet,  and  then,  with 
their  powerful  arms  and  hands,  pulling  the  trunk  to 
the  ground.  They  even  bit  the  trunks  of  the  plantain- 
trees,  for  these  are  juicy. 

They  ate  silently,  fearing  that,  if  they  made  any 
noise,  other  nginas  would  hear  them  and  come  to  the 
feast.  Even  the  njokoos,  if  they  heard  the  nginas, 
would  come,  and  the  nginas  would  have  to  run,  for 
there  were  no  trees  for  them  to  climb,  and  the  njokoos 
would  charge  upon  them. 

"  I  hope  no  njokoos  remember  this  place,"  said  the 
big  ngina ;  "  for  if  they  do  not  come,  we  shall  have 
food  for  several  days." 

The  nginas  are  very  wasteful.  After  they  get  hold 
of  a  bunch  of  plantains,  and  if  there  are  many,  they 
take  a  few  bites,  then  go  to  another  tree  and  pull 
it  down.  They  ate  until  they  could  eat  no  more, 
when  they  retired  into  the  dark  recess  of  the  forest. 
There  they  lay  on  their  backs,  the  baby  ngina  rest 
ing  on  the  breast  of  his  mother. 

They  remained  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  plantain- 

148 


NGINAS    KILLED    BY    HUNTERS 

trees  several  days,  and  would  come  at  dawn  to  eat, 
then  retire  to  the  forest,  and  come  again  before  sun 
set,  after  which  they  would  go  into  the  forest  to  sleep. 
The  time  came  when  they  had  eaten  all  the  bunches 
of  plantains,  and  they  then  left  the  place  for  good. 
They  laughed  and  said  :  "  If  njokoos  and  other  nginas 
come  here,  they  will  be  late  and  will  have  no  words 
of  love  or  affection  for  us,"  and  they  laughed  still 
more. 

They  had  hardly  entered  the  forest  when  they 
heard  the  voices  of  human  beings.  These  were  the 
five  hunters.  They  came  to  get  plantains  to  eat,  as 
well  as  to  seek  the  nginas  and  njokoos  of  whom  they 
were  in  pursuit.  Great  was  their  anger  when  they 
saw  that  the  nginas  had  eaten  everything.  They 
swore  again  that  they  would  kill  the  nginas. 

When  the  nginas  heard  their  voices,  the  big  one 
said  to  his  mate,  "  Let  us  move  away.  We  hate  the 
presence  of  human  beings."  And  they  went  far  away 
and  wandered  in  the  thickest  part  of  the  forest,  and 
did  not  come  into  that  neighborhood  any  more. 
They  agreed  to  go  back  to  the  big  koola-tree,  for 
they  hoped  to  find  many  nuts  on  the  ground,  and 
they  were  happy  as  they  thought  of  the  good  meal 
in  prospect.  One  day's  journey  was  to  bring  them  to 
the  place.  That  night  they  slept  in  their  usual  way. 
In  the  morning  they  departed,  expecting  to  reach  the 
koola-tree  toward  noon. 

But  that  very  same  morning  the  ngoas  had  been 
there  and  eaten  all  the  nuts  that  had  fallen  on  the 

149 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE  GREAT   FOREST 

ground,  and  when  they  went  away  they  laughed  and 
said,  "  If  the  other  herds  of  ngoas  or  the  nginas  come, 
and  other  men  of  the  woods,  to-day,  they  will  find 
that  they  are  too  late,  and  that  we  ngoas  have  been 
here  before  them  all." 

The  ngoas  had  not  been  long  gone,  when  the  three 
nginas  made  their  appearance.  Great  indeed  was 
their  disappointment  when  they  found  the  ground 
bare  of  nuts,  and  they  cried,  with  angry  voices,  as 
they  looked  at  the  footprints  of  the  ngoas,  "  Those 
horrid  ngoas  have  been  here  this  morning  and  eaten 
all  our  nuts." 

The  nginas  left  the  place  very  much  disgusted,  and 
continued  to  roam  in  the  forest  in  search  of  food. 
They  had  a  hard  time  to  get  a  living,  for  herds  of 
ngoas  and  many  nshiegos,  nkengos,  and  some  nginas 
had  been  in  that  part  of  the  forest  before  them. 

The  big  ngina,  seeing  this,  said  to  his  mate  : 
"Lately  we  have  worked  hard  for  our  living.  We 
have  had  bad  luck,  and  find  that  others  have  been  to 
our  chosen  places  before  us." 

"  Yes,"  she  replied,  "  I  think  it  would  be  better  for 
us  to  separate  during  the  day,  to  satisfy  our  hunger ; 
for  if  we  three  go  together,  we  shall  not  find  food 
enough  for  all  of  us.  We  will  keep  as  usual  within 
hearing  of  each  other's  voices.  When  I  call,  you  will 
answer,  and  when  you  call,  I  will  answer." 

The  next  morning  they  separated,  wishing  each 
other  good  luck,  the  baby  ngina  going  with  his 
mother.  During  the  day  they  kept  calling  to  each 

150 


NGINAS   KILLED    BY    HUNTERS 

other,  their  powerful,  guttural  voices  resounding 
through  the  forest  as  they  did  so.  The  voice  of  the 
ngina  can  be  heard  about  six  or  seven  miles  away. 

That  day  the  nginas  came  across  fresh  footprints  of 
human  beings.  When  they  met  that  evening  they 
told  each  other  of  their  discovery,  and  said,  "  We 
must  shun  them." 

The  footprints  the  nginas  had  seen  were  those  of 
the  five  hunters  who  had  sworn  never  to  come  back 
to  their  village  until  they  had  killed  some  nginas  and 
njokoos.  They  were  the  most  daring  men  of  their 
tribe,  and  had  spent  a  great  part  of  their  lives  in  the 
forest  killing  njokoos.  They  were  trying  to  locate 
the  nginas.  They  saw  by  the  tracks  the  njokoos  had 
left  behind  them  that  they  had  gone  a  long  way  off. 

It  happened  that  the  hunters  had  the  day  before 
discovered  the  place  where  the  nginas  had  slept. 
They  had  seen  at  the  base  of  the  tree  the  huge  foot 
prints  of  the  big  ngina,  the  smaller  ones  of  his  mate, 
and  the  tiny  ones  of  their  little  one.  So  they  knew 
that  there  were  three  of  them  together. 

They  said  :  "  Now  we  are  on  the  track  of  the  nginas. 
These  footprints  are  fresh ;  but  we  must  be  brave,  and 
aim  right,  for  the  big  fellow  is  sure  to  fight  and  will  try 
to  kill  us.  Our  guns  are  good.  With  them  we  have 
killed  many  njokoos,  and  we  will  kill  the  nginas  whose 
footprints  we  have  seen.  The  big  idol  of  our  village 
has  told  us  that  we  should  be  successful  in  our  hunt, 
and  that  we  should  not  return  without  having  killed 
nginas  or  njokoos.  We  have  made  powerful  incan- 


THE  WORLD    OF   THE  GREAT  FOREST 

tations,  and  the  charms  we  wear  will  protect  us  against 
them,  and  we  shall  not  be  killed." 

That  night  the  hunters  slept  under  a  tree,  and  in 
the  morning,  as  they  started  out,  they  said :  "  We 
must  walk  through  the  forest  and  jungle  as  noiselessly 
as  a  leopard,  and  we  must  be  near  one  another."  This 
was  the  very  same  morning  the  nginas  had  separated, 
the  better  to  get  enough  food  for  the  three.  The 
hunters  proceeded,  keeping  close  together.  They 
kept  a  sharp  lookout,  stopped  often  to  listen,  and 
their  eyes  tried  to  pierce  the  jungle  everywhere  at 
the  slightest  noise  they  heard. 

Suddenly  one  of  them  gave  a  cluck  of  warning. 
His  quick  ear  had  heard  a  rustling  in  the  jungle. 
This  cluck  is  made  with  the  tongue  striking  the  palate, 
and  does  not  alarm  the  animals  of  the  forest.  The 
four  other  hunters,  hearing  it,  drew  close  together  and 
listened.  They  also  heard  the  rustling.  There  was 
no  mistake.  This  could  only  be  the  nginas  walking 
through  the  jungle.  They  lay  flat  on  their  stomachs 
with  their  guns  cocked,  and  crawled  toward  the 
rustling  noise  and  at  last  saw  the  female  ngina  and 
her  baby.  They  were  busy  eating  tondos.  The  hun 
ters  fired  and  killed  them  both  on  the  spot.  They 
fell  without  uttering  a  groan. 

The  big  ngina  did  not  hear  the  detonation  of  the 
guns  that  had  killed  his  mate  and  baby,  and  did  not 
know  that  they  were  both  dead.  Now  and  then,  as 
he  was  moving  along  in  search  of  food,  he  would  call 
for  his  mate  as  he  was  wont  to  do  when  they  were 


NGINAS    KILLED    BY    HUNTERS 

separated,  and  as  they  had  agreed  to  do  in  the  morn 
ing.  But  now  his  calls  were  not  answered,  and  he 
thought  that,  pressed  by  hunger,  she  had  wandered 
beyond  the  reach  of  his  voice.  After  a  while  he 
became  anxious  and  repeated  his  calls  oftener,  saying : 
"Where  are  you?  Why  do  you  not  answer  me?" 
But  no  answer  came,  though  he  listened  intently. 
The  forest  remained  silent.  He  could  only  hear  the 
echo  of  his  own  powerful  voice. 

The  day  had  almost  passed  without  any  tidings  of 
his  mate.  Then  he  became  thoroughly  alarmed,  and 
near  sunset  he  grew  frantic  and  called  for  his  family 
at  the  very  top  of  his  voice,  uttering  despairing  and 
appalling  roars.  All  the  creatures  of  the  forest  thought 
they  never  heard  in  all  their  lives  any  ngina  roar  so 
loud,  and  many  of  them  were  terribly  frightened  and 
fled  in  all  directions  away  from  the  dread  sounds. 

The  ngina  continued  to  call  for  his  mate,  but  no 
answer  came.  Then  he  was  sure  that  some  great 
misfortune  had  happened  to  his  family.  Perhaps  a 
heavy  limb  of  a  tree  had  fallen  upon  them  and  killed 
them  both  outright.  When  night  came,  he  rested  at 
the  foot  of  a  tree,  but  could  not  sleep,  for  he  was 
thinking  all  the  time  of  his  missing  ones.  At  day 
break  he  renewed  his  terrific  roaring,  which  was  heard 
again  far  and  wide  ;  but  no  response  came  back  to  him. 

After  the  hunters  had  killed  the  two  nginas,  they 
cut  off  their  heads  and  slung  them  round  their 
shoulders  as  trophies,  to  show  to  their  people  on 
their  return  to  the  village.  Then  they  started  in 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE   GREAT  FOREST 

search  of  the  big  ngina,  whom  they  expected  to  meet 
at  any  moment,  seeking  his  mate  and  his  baby.  So 
they  were  on  the  lookout  for  him,  as  they  did  not  want 
to  be  taken  unawares.  They  said  :  "  If  we  meet  this 
big  kombo  [fighter]  ngina,  it  will  be  a  fight  for  life. 
We  must  kill  him  or  he  will  kill  us.  Let  us  beware 
lest  he  seize  one  of  us  in  his  powerful  clutches  or 
give  us  a  terrific  blow  with  his  open  hand." 

At  last,  to  his  great  joy,  the  big  ngina  discovered 
the  footprints  of  his  mate  and  baby.  At  the  sight  he 
roared  louder  than  he  had  ever  done  in  his  life ;  but 
still  no  answer  came  back  to  him.  He  followed  the 
tracks  and  continued  to  call.  The  hunters  heard  him 
and  nerved  themselves  for  the  great  conflict.  It  was 
to  be  a  fight  to  the  death.  Gradually  the  sound  came 
nearer  and  nearer.  The  ngina  evidently  continued  to 
follow  the  footsteps  of  his  mate.  Then  came  a  silence. 
The  roars  stopped !  The  five  men  made  ready  and 
formed  a  circle  so  that  they  could  see  where  the  attack 
of  the  monster  would  come  from,  and  be  ready  to 
face  him  together  when  he  came  toward  them.  Their 
guns  were  cocked,  and  they  were  ready  to  fire  at  a 
second's  notice. 

Suddenly  they  saw  not  far  from  them  in  the  midst 
of  the  leaves  a  huge  black  fierce-looking  face,  watching 
them  silently.  It  was  the  face  of  the  ngina.  His 
eyes  were  vindictive  and  full  of  hatred.  All  at  once 
the  monster  saw  the  heads  of  his  mate  and  baby  slung 
round  two  of  the  hunters.  At  this  sight  his  rage 
knew  no  bounds.  He  uttered  his  yell  of  attack,  and, 


NGINAS    KILLED    BY   HUNTERS 

standing  upright,  with  hair  erect  on  his  body,  showing 
his  anger,  and  the  hair  on  his  head  moving  up  and. 
down,  he  advanced,  yelling  and  roaring,  and  beating 
his  tremendous  chest  with  his  huge  fist.  At  each  yell 
he  opened  his  mouth  and  showed  his  powerful  teeth. 

Then  the  detonation  of  five  guns  fired  at  the  same 
time  was  heard,  and  the  huge  ngina  was  pierced  to  the 
heart,  and  fell  forward  uttering  a  groan  of  pain,  his 
powerful  arms  stretched  toward  his  enemy  as  if  ready 
to  clutch  them.  He  was  dead.  The  hunters  cut  off 
his  head  and  went  back  to  their  village,  and  this  was 
the  end  of  the  family  of  nginas  whose  adventures  we 
have  followed. 


'55 


CHAPTER   XXIV 

THE    OMEMBAS,    OR    SNAKES 

O  ME  MB  AS  are  very  numerous  and  much 
dreaded  by  all  the  animals  and  human  beings 
of  the  great  forest.  There  are  many  species  differ 
ing  greatly  in  their  colors  and  the  designs  of  their 
skins.  Some  are  very  large,  and  others  quite  small. 
Many  are  very  poisonous,  and  their  bites  cause  death. 
Those  having  no  fangs  are  not  poisonous. 

Some  of  the  omembas  spend  a  great  part  of  their 
lives  in  the  water.  Others  live  chiefly  among  the 
branches  of  trees,  while  many  crawl  on  the  ground, 
Quite  a  number  are  night  snakes.  Many  have  skins 
resembling  in  color  their  habitats,  which  enables  them 
to  catch  their  prey  without  being  detected  by  their 
victims.  Those  that  are  green  live  chiefly  among 
shrubs  or  in  thickets,  where  they  more  readily  catch 
birds  and  devour  their  eggs.  Others  are  of  the  color 
of  the  bark  of  trees,  round  which  they  coil  to  wait  for 
prey.  Several  are  of  the  color  of  dead  leaves  that 
have  fallen  on  the  ground.  Several  species  have  a 
good  knowledge  of  color. 

All  snakes  live  upon  animals.  Many  little  ones 
feed  on  toads,  mice,  rats,  etc.  Some  even  eat  other 
snakes,  when  famished.  Some,  like  to  hide  in  houses 

156 


THE   OMEMBAS,   OR   SNAKES 

and  during  the  night  prey  on  rats  and  mice.  Others 
enter  chicken  coops  and  devour  chickens  and  their 
eggs,  of  which  many  species  are  very  fond. 

The  omembas  are  very  knowing  and  show  great 
intelligence  in  their  ways  of  getting  at  their  prey. 
Some  have  the  power  of  charming  their  victims  so  that 
they  cannot  escape.  The  only  language  of  the  omem 
bas  known  to  the  animals  of  the  forest  is  a  hissing 
which  they  make  when  attacked  or  frightened.  Then 
they  raise  themselves  and  show  fight.  Otherwise  the 
language  of  the  omembas  whereby  they  communicate 
with  one  another  is  never  heard.  Some  think  that 
they  do  so  with  their  eyes,  or  by  the  motion  of  their 
bodies.  Others  by  whispers  or  sounds  only  heard  by 
omembas'  quick  ears.  Strange  to  say,  the  omembas 
change  their  coats  or  skins  every  year.  They  go  out 
of  them  just  as  a  human  being  gets  out  of  his  clothes. 

The  greatest  enemies  of  the  omembas  are  the 
ichneumons,  the  ants,  and  some  of  the  night  prowlers, 
such  as  some  kinds  of  weasels,  or  animals  akin  to  them. 


CHAPTER   XXV 


AN  enormous-sized  ombama,  about  thirty  feet 
long,  said  to  himself  one  day :  "  I  am  so  big 
now  that  I  do  not  feed  on  small  game.  I  like  to  feed 
on  kambis  and  ncheris.  I  am  so  hungry  that  I  must 
find  out  a  good  place  to  coil  myself  in  and  there  wait 
for  prey  that  may  pass  by  me/*  He  wanted  a  tree 
having  a  bark  near  the  color  of  his  skin. 

As  he  crawled  along,  he  looked  for  such  a  tree, 
He  passed  hundreds  of  trees,  nay,  thousands.  Some 
of  them  were  nearly  of  his  color,  but  he  thought 
that  he  would  find  more  deceiving  ones  still,  so  that 
when  he  was  coiled  round  their  trunks,  the  antelopes, 
the  gazelles,  the  boars,  and  other  animals  could  not 
detect  him.  So  he  went  on  his  way,  meeting  many 
snakes.  Some  said,  "  I  am  journeying  toward  the 
villages  of  men,  and  intend  to  stay  in  a  house  and 
watch  for  rats."  Others  said, "  I  am  going  for  ducks, 
chickens,  and  hen's  eggs  ;  but  if  I  can  get  a  goat,  I  will 
coil  round  and  swallow  him."  But  the  big  ombama 
had  made  up  his  mind  to  have  a  kambi  for  a  meal. 

After  a  long  search  he  saw  a  tree,  the  bark  of  which 
was  the  color  of  his  skin.  Then  he  said :  "  This  is 

158 


A    HUGE    OMBAMA,   OR    PYTHON 

the  tree  for  me.  Animals  will  come  near  it  without 
seeing  me.  How  I  shall  deceive  them  ! " 

He  coiled  around  the  trunk  and  waited  patiently  for 
a  kambi,  a  ncheri,  or  a  ngoa,  or  any  other  big  animal 
of  the  forest,  for  he  hoped  that  some  of  them,  unaware 
of  his  presence,  would  soon  pass  by.  He  listened  for 
sounds  telling  him  of  the  coming  of  his  unsuspected 
victims.  His  head  and  neck,  at  some  distance  from 
the  trunk  of  the  tree,  moved  one  way  and  another, 
and  his  piercing  eyes  glanced  around  in  all  directions. 
He  said  to  himself:  "  I  must  be  patient,  for  sometimes 
at  the  end  of  the  day,  and  when  I  least  expect  it,  some 
animal  makes  its  appearance  and  I  spring  upon  him, 
wind  around  him,  and  squeeze  him  to  death  in  my 
vise-like  coils,  which  become  tighter  and  tighter  until 
I  crush  him." 

He  waited  and  waited,  but  nothing  came  that  way. 
So  he  had  to  go  without  food  that  day,  saying  to  him 
self,  "  The  life  of  the  ombamas  is  not  always  a  pleasant 
one.  How  often  I  have  to  work  hard  for  my  living  !  " 
He  left  the  place  hungry  and  much  disappointed,  and 
remembered,  although  he  had  not  been  in  that  part 
of  the  forest  for  a  long  time,  that  there  was  a  pond 
in  the  neighborhood. 

After  some  wandering  he  came  to  this  pond,  which 
was  a  large  pool  of  clear  water  fed  by  a  spring. 
There  he  stopped  and  said,  "  Surely  some  of  the 
animals  of  the  forest  will  come  here  to  drink."  And 
as  he  looked  around,  he  saw  footprints  of  kambis  and 
ncheris  and  other  creatures.  He  was  delighted,  and  at 


THE  WORLD  OF   THE   GREAT    FOREST 

the  sight  thought  that  he  should  soon  get  a  good 
meal.  He  saw  a  tree  by  the  water  of  the  same  color 
as  his  skin  and  coiled  himself  around  it  and  waited. 
His  head  and  neck  were  in  constant  motion,  looking 
out  for  prey.  "  Surely  some  animal  will  come  toward 
sunset/'  he  thought,  "  for  that  is  the  time  when  they 
come  to  drink."  He  knew  well  the  habits  of  the 

kambis  and  the 
ncheris  and  ngoas 
and  other  animals 
upon  which  he 
lived. 

Soon  an  unsus 
pecting  kambi 
made  his  appear 
ance,  nibbling  at  a 
few  leaves  as  she 
came  toward  the 
pool  to  have  a 
drink.  The  big 
ombama  looked  at 
her  with  glaring 
eyes,  and  when  she 
came  within  a  short 
distance  of  his  tree,  he  made  a  tremendous  spring, 
and  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye  his  body  was  coiled 
round  the  poor  creature  and  squeezed  her  so  tightly 
that  at  last  she  died. 

Then  the  ombama  had  very   hard  work,  for  the 
kambi  was  too  big  for  him  to  swallow.     So  he  used 

160 


A   HUGE   OMBAMA,   OR   PYTHON 

all  his  strength  to  make  the  body  smaller  and  smaller 
by  crushing  it.  It  was  a  slow  but  sure  process,  and 
he  succeeded.  When  he  thought  the  kambi  was 
ready  for  eating,  he  put  the  head  in  his  mouth,  after 
it  had  been  properly  crushed  by  his  powerful  coils, 
and  then  began  another  squeezing  process,  which 
made  the  rest  of  the  animal  small  enough  to  be  grad 
ually  swallowed.  Before  the  kambi  was  digested,  and 
while  it  was  still  whole  in  his  body,  it  was  nearly  three 
times  the  length  it  had  been  when  alive. 

Soon  after  his  meal,  the  big  ombama  fell  asleep,  — 
a  lethargic,  digestive  sleep  among  the  dead  leaves  on 
the  ground.  The  ombamas  and  omembas  always  fall 
into  such  sleep  when  they  have  had  a  hearty  meal 
and  digest  it.  Lucky  was  the  big  ombama  that  no 
enemy  passed  by,  nor  a  njokoo  to  trample  upon  him. 

After  digesting  his  meal,  which  took  a  number  of 
days,  he  awoke,  and,  encountering  the  omembas  he 
had  met  before,  he  asked  for  news.  One  who  had 
been  in  the  chicken  coop  said :  "  I  had  a  big  rooster 
and  all  the  eggs  I  found  in  one  of  the  hens'  nests  for 
my  meal.  After  this,  I  went  immediately  away,  for  I 
hate  an  open  place,  and  hid  in  the  forest  and  went  to 
sleep."  Another  omemba  said,  "  As  I  came  into  the 
village,  I  saw  a  small  dog,  and  sprang  upon  him  and 
coiled  myself  around  him  and  ate  him  up." 

Then  they  parted,  each  going  his  own  way. 

The  big  ombama,  after  his  sleep  and  recollection 
of  the  big  meal  of  the  kambi,  felt  very  well  and  jour 
neyed  toward  a  river  of  clear  water  and  there  took  a 
ii  161 


THE  WORLD  OF   THE  GREAT  FOREST 

bath  and  enjoyed  it.  His  skin  was  becoming  dim 
in  color  and  shabby,  and  he  longed  for  another 
one.  One  day  he  felt  his  old  skin  getting  loose,  and 
said  to  himself,  "  It  is  time  for  me  to  have  a  brand- 
new  coat.  I  am  ashamed  of  this  old  one,  it  is  so 
shabby  and  worn  out." 

Then  he  pushed  himself  through  with  his  head, 
and,  lo!  in  a  short  time  his  old  coat  from  head  to 
tail  was  behind  him.  He  had  come  out  of  his  old 
clothes  with  a  bright  and  shining  outfit.  As  he  moved 
away,  he  said,  "  Good-by,  dear  old  coat,  good-by, 
good-by."  Now  he  felt  like  himself  again  and  said, 
"  I  am  glad  I  have  such  a  fine  new  coat  and  have  left 
the  old  one.  I  am  handsome  now." 

After  changing  his  skin  the  big  ombama  became 
hungry  again,  and  finding  a  suitable  tree,  he  coiled 
round  it  and  waited  for  prey.  He  saw  strange  sights. 
As  he  was  looking  round,  he  saw  a  big  black  and  yel 
low  tree-snake  crawling  near  his  tree,  and  watched  him. 
The  tree-omemba  stopped,  and  said  to  himself:  "  I  am 
hungry.  I  live  chiefly  upon  trees,  and  I  will  ascend 
one  and  will  look  out  for  a  monkey,  a  bird,  or  a  large 
squirrel  if  I  come  near  enough.  I  look  at  them  and 
try  to  put  them  under  my  spell,  so  that  they  will  be 
paralyzed  and  will  not  be  able  to  run  away  from  me." 

Then  he  raised  himself  and  coiled  round  the 
trunk  of  a  small  tree,  and  crawled  upwards  until  he 
reached  one  of  its  branches,  and  then  travelled  from 
this  branch  to  one  from  another  tree,  and  so  on  for 
many  trees.  This  was  easy,  for  the  branches  were 

162 


A   HUGE    OMBAMA,   OR    PYTHON 


all  intermingled  with  one  another.  His  cunning  eyes 
were  looking  everywhere  as  he  crept  along,  seeking 
for  monkeys,  big  birds,  or  squirrels.  He  moved  so 
slyly  that  he  did  not  make  the  slightest  noise,  even 
less  than  the  wind  passing  through  the  branches. 
Suddenly  he  saw  a 
monkey  quite  by 
himself.  He  crawled 
toward  the  poor 
monkey  as  fast  as 
he  could,  and  at  last 
came  near  enough  to 
coil  himself  up  with 
out  being  detected. 
This  he  was  obliged 
to  do  as  a  prelim 
inary,  since  the 
omembas  cannot 
spring  upon  their 
prey  except  when 
they  are  coiled  up, 
for  when  they  are 
extended  to  their 
full  length  they  have 
no  power. 

He  looked  at  the  monkey  intently,  and,  as  it  were, 
magnetized  the  poor  creature,  who  looked  at  him  in 
the  greatest  terror.  The  eyes  of  the  ombama  never 
left  him.  He  was  charming  his  prey,  and  said,  "  Now 
I  am  going  to  charm  the  monkey,  and  he  will  then  be 

163 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE  GREAT   FOREST 

unable  to  escape  me."  The  omemba  glided  toward 
the  monkey,  and  when  he  had  come  near  enough,  he 
sprang  upon  him  quicker  than  an  arrow  flying  through 
the  air  and  coiled  round  him  in  the  twinkling  of  an 
eye,  and  his  coils  soon  crushed  the  life  out  of  him. 

After  his  meal  the  omemba  came  down  the  tree, 
having  found  a  comfortable  place  where  he  thought 
himself  safe,  and  fell  into  a  deep  sleep.  When  he 
awoke  he  felt  like  taking  a  bath,  and  went  to  a  beauti 
ful  clear  limpid  stream,  and  after  a  swim  coiled  him 
self  round  the  branch  of  a  tree  under  water,  after 
which  he  went  in  search  of  prey  again,  as  he  had 
done  during  all  the  days  of  his  life. 

The  big  ombama  had  also  succeeded  in  capturing 
a  big  ncheri,  and  after  his  meal  fell  asleep  in  the 
midst  of  a  mass  of  dead  leaves  that  were  more  or  less 
of  the  color  of  his  skin. 

It  happened  the  next  day  that  a  rogue  elephant, 
who  was  wandering  all  alone,  passed  near  the  big 
ombama.  The  njokoo  became  angry  at  the  sight  of 
him.  He  advanced  toward  him  and  trampled  upon 
him  several  times  until  he  was  dead.  Then  he  uttered 
sharp  trumpetings  of  satisfaction  for  what  he  had 
done.  The  njokoos  hate  serpents  and  trample  upon 
them  whenever  they  can. 


164 


CHAPTER   XXVI 

THE    NTOTO,    OR    ICHNEUMON 

ANTOTO,  with  his  elongated  weasel-like  form, 
stretched  his  short  legs,  and,  looking  at  his 
dirty  reddish-brown  spotted  skin,  as  he  lay  in  the 
hollow  of  his  tree,  said :  "  Many  kinds  of  ntotos 
inhabit  this  great  forest  where  I  was  born.  How  we 
ichneumons  hate  these  horrid  creeping  crawling  crea 
tures,  the  omembas  !  We  kill  them  every  time  we 
have  a  chance.  We  show  them  no  mercy,  for  often 
when  we  starve  it  is  owing  to  them.  They  eat  the 
prey  upon  which  we  feed.  We  are  not  even  afraid 
of  the  biggest  of  them,  —  those  that  feed  on  kambis, 
ncheris,  or  ngoas." 

Leaving  his  place,  he  walked  along  slowly  through 
the  jungle,  and  listened,  hoping  to  hear  the  noise 
made  by  omembas  crawling  among  the  fallen  leaves. 
After  a  short  ramble,  he  saw  among  the  leaves  one 
of  the  worst  kind  of  omembas  inhabiting  the  forest. 
He  was  short  and  very  thick,  with  a  skin  much  the 
color  of  the  soil  and  leaves.  He  had  a  large  trian 
gular-shaped  head,  with  a  short  horn  rising  from  the 
end  of  his  nose.  His  mouth  possessed  terrible  fangs 
surrounded  by  bags  filled  with  most  deadly  poison, 
which  cause  death  in  a  very  short  time. 

165 


THE  WORLD  OF   THE   GREAT  FOREST 

At  the  sight  of  this  omemba,  the  ichneumon  was 
filled  with  rage.  His  hair  stood  erect  on  his  body. 
His  eyes  were  full  of  hatred,  and  he  prepared  himself 
for  conflict  with  his  enemy,  —  the  creature  he  hated 
more  than  any  other. 

All  the  omembas  dread  the  ntotos,  for  they  know 
that  they  are  their  inveterate  enemies,  that  they  are 
very  cunning,  and  that  many  of  their  own  kind  are 
killed  by  them.  The  horrid-looking  omemba,  as  he 
crawled  along,  was  not  at  first  aware  that  a  ntoto  had 
just  seen  him,  but  all  at  once  he  scented  danger,  and 
made  off  with  the  utmost  speed,  hoping  that  he  had 
not  been  seen,  and  would  escape  with  his  life. 

The  ichneumon  knew  the  danger  he  had  to 
encounter.  He  knew  that  his  enemy  had  terribly 
long  poisonous  fangs,  and  if  the  omemba  succeeded 
in  biting  him  he  would  surely  die.  But  this  thought 
did  not  make  him  afraid.  On  the  contrary,  it  made 
him  more  fierce,  though  also  very  cautious  and  pru 
dent.  He  followed  the  omemba,  taking  care  not  to 
be  seen,  and  suddenly  with  lightning-like  swiftness  he 
attacked  him,  imbedding  his  teeth  firmly  in  the  back 
of  his  neck,  his  claws  firmly  holding  the  ground,  and 
in  two  or  three  bites  had  almost  severed  the  omemba's 
head  from  his  body  and  had  broken  his  spinal  column, 
thus  preventing  him  from  crawling  any  more.  Only 
the  quivering  of  his  body  showed  that  life  lingered  for 
a  few  seconds. 

After  killing  the  omemba  and  gloating  over  his 
victory,  the  ichneumon  continued  his  way,  and  soon 

1 66 


"  He  attacked  him,  embedding  his  teeth  firmly  in  the 
back  of  his  neck  " 


THE    NTOTO,   OR    ICHNEUMON 

saw  another  omemba,  which  was  a  much  longer  and 
slender  one,  of  a  black  and  yellow  color.  He  was 
coiled  and  ready  to  spring  on  any  unsuspecting  prey 
that  should  come  within  his  reach.  At  the  sight  his 
coarse  reddish-brown  spotted  fur  once  more  stood 
erect,  and  he  sprang  at  once  to  the  attack. 

The  ntotos  are  wonderfully  agile  in  their  move 
ments  when  they  attack.  They  dodge  every  time  the 
omembas  prepare  to  spring  upon  them.  Their  quick 
eyes  seize  every  motion  and  every  intention  of  their 
adversary. 

At  the  ichneumon's  approach  the  snake  rose  partly 
from  his  coils  in  great  fear,  for  he  knew  that  the 
enemy  he  dreaded  most  was  to  attack  him,  and  that 
his  life  was  in  great  danger.  But  he  watched  closely 
his  opportunity  to  spring  upon  his  enemy  and  coil 
round  his  body,  and  squeeze  him  to  death. 

The  ichneumon  knew  this,  and  moved  so  quickly 
from  one  place  to  another  that  the  eyes  of  the  snake 
could  not  follow  him.  It  was  a  game  of  hide-and- 
seek.  The  ichneumon  was  simply  waiting  for  his 
opportunity,  which  came  at  last.  The  snake  gave 
a  dart  at  the  ichneumon,  who,  quick  as  lightning, 
leaped  aside.  The  snake  had  no  time  to  coil  him 
self  again,  and  fled.  In  an  instant  the  ichneumon 
sprang  on  his  back  next  his  head,  so  that  he  could  not 
turn  his  poisonous  fangs  upon  him,  and  in  two  or 
three  bites  severed  the  neck  from  the  body.  The 
battle  was  over. 

After  this  second  battle  the  ichneumon  continued  on 

167 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE  GREAT  FOREST 

his  way,  and  ere  long  met  a  comrade.  They  saluted 
each  other,  and  the  one  who  had  fought  with  the 
omembas  recounted  his  victories,  and  then  asked  the 
other  in  his  turn,  "  Where  have  you  been  to-night  ?  " 
cc  I  have  had  a  grand  old  time  to-night,"  replied  the 
second  ichneumon.  "  I  entered  a  village  of  human 
beings  which  I  discovered,  and  got  into  a  chicken-coop 
and  killed  all  the  chickens,  including  the  big  rooster. 
I  made  for  the  rooster  first.  I  killed  them  all  in 
true  ichneumon  fashion  by  biting  them  on  the  neck. 
How  the  blood  poured  out !  And  it  tasted  so  good 
and  sweet !  Now  I  am  going  back  home  to  the 
hollow  of  my  tree  where  I  sleep." 

Then  the  two  bade  each  other  good-by. 

Years  passed  by.  As  the  fighting  ichneumon  be 
came  older,  his  warfare  upon  the  snakes  became  less 
and  less  fierce,  for  he  was  less  nimble  and  was  growing 
stiff  in  his  movements.  He  had  to  content  himself 
with  killing  rats,  mice,  and  other  small  animals. 

Often  when  he  saw  a  snake  the  remembrance  of  his 
former  attacks  upon  them  came  back  to  him,  and  sev 
eral  times  he  felt  tempted  to  renew  the  conflict  with 
them,  but  he  did  not  give  way  to  his  inclination,  for 
he  had  become  prudent. 

But  one  day  he  felt  particularly  well,  and  more 
nimble  than  usual.  As  he  was  seeking  for  a  meal,  he 
saw  a  long  slender  snake  of  the  worst  kind. 

The  snake,  as  he  was  crawling  along,  had  also  seen 
the  ichneumon.  All  at  once  he  stopped  and  coiled 
himself  up  for  self-protection  and  fight  if  attacked. 

1 68 


THE   NTOTO,   OR   ICHNEUMON 

The  ichneumon,  at  the  sight  of  the  snake,  forgot 
his  old  age  and  his  stiffness ;  the  memory  of  his  past 
conflicts  with  snakes  came  back  to  him,  and  he  ran  to 
attack  the  creature  he  hated  so  much. 

The  snake  reared  his  head  and  neck,  leaving  a 
large  part  of  his  body  coiled,  so  that  he  could  spring 
upon  his  antagonist  at  the  proper  time,  if  he  had  a 
chance ;  his  tongue  protruded,  and  he  hissed  as  his 
enemy  came  near. 

The  ichneumon  used  his  old  tactics,  went  quickly 
round  and  round  the  snake,  to  bewilder  him.  The 
snake  was  filled  with  fear,  and  hissed  continuously. 
But  though  the  tactics  of  the  ichneumon  were  those  of 
the  days  of  old,  his  movements  were  much  slower,  and 
he  was  not  equal  to  the  conflict,  though  he  thought 
he  was.  Suddenly,  like  a  flash,  the  snake  darted  upon 
him  and  coiled  himself  round  his  body.  His  coils 
were  so  close  that  he  crushed  the  life  out  of  the 
ichneumon,  and  then,  at  his  leisure,  swallowed  him. 


169 


CHAPTER  XXVII 

THE    IBOBOTI,    OR    SPIDER 

A  BIG  yellow  and  black  spotted  iboboti,  with  a 
body  as  large  as  a  sparrow's  egg,  and  with  very 
strong  long  legs,  who  was  much  given  to  philosophic 
reflection,  said  one  day  to  himself :  "  Our  kin  is  very 
numerous.  We  spiders  are  of  many  kinds,  of  differ 
ent  shapes  and  sizes,  and  of  varied  colors.  We  also 
lead  different  lives.  Some  of  us  like  to  live  in  the 
sun,  others  in  the  shade ;  some  in  the  forest,  others  in 
houses  of  human  beings.  Strange  to  say,  there  are 
some  of  us  who  live  in  burrows.  Some  of  our  kin 
are  day  spiders  ;  others  belong  to  the  night.  Some 
make  webs  to  entrap  their  prey  ;  others  do  not.  Some 
have  short  legs,  others  very  long  ones ;  the  latter 
spin  webs.  We  are  all  very  voracious  and  spring 
upon  our  prey  with  great  fury.  We  are  brave ;  if  we 
were  not,  we  should  starve." 

Then,  looking  at  his  web,  the  iboboti  said :  cc  I  do 
not  wonder  that  I  have  been  starving  for  the  last  few 
days,  and  that  my  victims  —  the  flies  and  other  in 
sects —  have  escaped  from  my  meshes.  My  web  has 
become  dilapidated.  It  is  full  of  holes.  I  am  tired 
of  repairing  it.  Time,  rain,  and  the  sun  have  done 

170 


THE    IBOBOTI,   OR   SPIDER 

their  mischievous  work.  The  threads  have  become 
brittle.  It  is  time  for  me  to  leave  this  spot  and  the 
old  web,  which  I  have  spun  and  constructed  with  so 
much  care  and  ingenuity,  and  go  to  some  other  place 
and  spin  a  new  one. 

"  To  begin  a  web  and  leave  it  unfinished,  without 
proper  reason,  is  waste ;  but  sometimes  it  is  necessary, 
and  now  is  one  of  those  times.  We  web  spiders  have 
to  use  great  judgment  in  the  selection  of  the  place  we 
choose  to  build  our  webs  in." 

He  pondered  the  matter  awhile  and  then 
exclaimed  :  — 

"  How  wonderful  indeed  are  our  gifts  !  This  semi- 
liquid  secretion  contained  in  our  bodies  we  force  out, 
when  we  spin,  through  the  minute  tubes  which  cover 
our  spinnerets.  This,  after  being  forced  out,  becomes 
hard  by  contact  with  the  air,  and  turns  into  threads, 
which  after  they  are  united  make  the  web  much 
stronger  than  if  it  had  been  made  of  a  single  strand." 

Saying  this,  he  decided  to  depart  at  once,  and  began 
to  creep  along,  spider  fashion,  and  travel  on  trees  in 
search  of  a  good  place  to  build  another  web  in,  looking 
all  round  as  he  went  along,  and  thinking  to  himself: 
"  My  life  is  not  an  easy  one.  I  have  to  work  hard  for 
my  living.  The  webs  we  spiders  build  with  so  much 
care  and  skill  are  often  destroyed  by  passing  animals, 
or  birds  flying  through  them,  or  by  limbs  of  trees 
falling  upon  them." 

After  a  tedious  journey,  the  spider  saw  a  nice  open 
space  in  the  forest  between  two  shrubs.  He  stopped, 

171 


THE  WORLD  OF   THE  GREAT  FOREST 

and,  looking  at  it  carefully  from  above,  said  :  "  I  think 
this  spot  is  a  good  place.  Flies,  insects,  and  even 
small  birds  will  pass  through  one  way  or  another,  for 
the  trees  and  jungle  are  thick  all  around  this  spot.  I 
will  spin  my  web  here." 

The  spider  felt  that  a  storm  was  coming,  and  said  : 
"  When  it  rains  I  never  spin  my  web.  I  will  wait  for 
fine  and  seasonable  weather,  which,  if  I  am  not  mis 
taken,  we  shall  have  to-morrow."  The  web  spiders 
have  the  gift  of  knowing  when  the  weather  is  going  to 
be  stormy  or  fine. 

The  rain  came  as  he  feared,  but  the  following  day 
the  weather  was  fine,  and  the  spider  made  preparations 
to  begin  spinning  his  web.  Then  he  began  work  with 
his  head  downward,  forcing  the  secretion  and  working 
the  spinnerets,  attaching  the  beginning  of  the  thread 
to  a  branch  of  a  tree  first,  then  lowering  himself  by 
this  thread.  Then,  when  he  reached  the  bottom,  he 
ascended,  spinning  another  thread  as  a  support  with 
one  of  his  legs.  The  thread  was  of  a  bright  orange 
yellow  like  the  color  of  his  body. 

The  spider  built  a  network  of  very  strong  threads 
to  support  the  whole  structure ;  these  were  the  sup 
porting  beams.  Between  these,  he  span  smaller  deli 
cate  threads,  using  fewer  spinnerets,  directing  his  legs 
to  do  the  work  as  the  threads  were  spun. 

After  several  days*  work  the  web  was  finished,  and 
the  yellow  and  black  spotted  spider  looked  at  it  and 
was  pleased.  It  was  a  wonderful  and  delicate  piece 
of  work  done  with  great  skill,  judgment,  and  thought. 

172 


THE    IBOBOTI,   OR   SPIDER 

It  was  very  elastic,  so  as  to  resist  the  power  of  the 

wind. 

Then    the 

spider  said 
with  great  de 
light:  "Now 
I  shall  not 
starve,  for  my 
web  is  new. 
\  I  hope  that  I 
have  chosen  a 


good  spot,  and 
that  flies,  insects, 
and  even  small  birds  will  fly 
blindly  into  my  meshes.  Now 
I  shall  live  well."  Then  he 
took  a  good  place  of  vantage, 
and  stood  motionless  as  if 
dead,  on  the  outer  border  of 
his  web,  and  listened  intently, 
and  looked  round  with  his 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE    GREAT  FOREST 

ferocious-looking  eyes,  waiting  for  prey.  Suddenly 
he  said :  "  Oh,  how  hungry  I  am  !  I  am  so  created 
that  I  have  to  live  as  I  do,  for  I  am  only  powerful 
when  I  walk  on  my  web.  I  am  unlike  all  the  other 
creatures  that  fly  or  walk,  for  they  go  and  seek  prey 
to  satisfy  their  hunger,  while  I,  on  the  contrary,  have 
to  stand  still  and  wait  for  my  victims  to  come  blindly 
into  the  web.  If  they  do  not  come,  then  I  starve. 
No  wonder  that  I  attack  with  such  fierceness  those 
who  get  entangled  in  my  meshes.  I  have  to  be  very 
patient.  Still  I  have  reason  to  be;  for  sometimes 
when  I  am  despairing,  a  big  fly  or  insect  flies  into 
my  web  and  provides  me  with  a  bite.  But  I  require 
many  a  bite  to  make  a  good  meal." 

Then  he  made  himself  ready,  stretched  his  long 
legs,  and  lay  as  flat  as  he  could,  and  waited.  Soon 
his  web  shook,  and  the  trembling  made  him  look  up. 
He  saw  a  very  large  iboco  fly  struggling  to  get  out  of 
the  meshes  of  the  web ;  but  its  struggles  were  in  vain, 
for  the  more  the  poor  fly  struggled,  the  more 
entangled  it  became.  The  spider  ran  with  his  long 
legs  over  the  threads  of  his  web,  and  soon  pounced 
upon  the  poor  iboco  and  sucked  the  life  out  of 
him. 

After  this,  he  went  back  to  his  place  of  vantage, 
and  said  :  "  I  think  I  hear  the  buzzing  of  a  horrid 
wasp.  If  this  wicked  creature  sees  me,  she  will  come 
and  attack  me,  and  carry  me  away  and  eat  me,  as  I 
have  just  done  the  fly  that  came  into  my  net.  How 
I  hate  the  wasp  !  " 


THE   IBOBOTI,   OR    SPIDER 

So  this  spider  spent  his  days  in  killing  creatures 
to  sustain  his  own  life,  which  was  not  such  a  happy 
one,  for  he  had  many  enemies  and  was  in  constant 
dread  of  them,  besides  going  hungry  often  when  no 
insects  strayed  into  his  web. 


*75 


CHAPTER  XXVIII 

THE    TRAP-DOOR    IBOBOTI,    OR    BURROW    SPIDER 

ONE  day  an  ashen-gray  trap-door  spider,  while 
in  the  dark  recesses  of  his  home,  mused  as  fol 
lows  :  "  What  great  intelligence  I  have  been  gifted 
with !  I  can  make  a  burrow,  and  close  its  entrance 
with  a  door  of  my  own  making,  that  prevents  my 
enemies  from  getting  in  to  attack  me.  When  I  am 
inside,  and  my  door  is  closed,  I  feel  absolutely  safe." 

The  spider  then  thought  how  cosey  and  comfortable 
his  home  was,  and,  looking  round,  saw  many  heads, 
legs,  and  wings  of  the  insects  he  had  brought  in  to 
consume  at  his  leisure. 

This  sight  reminded  him  of  the  numerous  feasts  he 
had  enjoyed,  and  of  the  tussles  he  had  had  before 
capturing  his  victims.  This  recollection  gave  him 
an  appetite  and  a  longing  for  more  fights  and  more 
meals. 

This  trap-door  spider  had  strong,  short  legs,  and  a 
head  armed  with  powerful  nippers,  between  which  was 
his  ugly  mouth,  ready  to  suck  the  life  of  his  prey. 

The  spider  walked  to  the  opening  of  his  burrow  to 
watch.  His  fierce  eyes  turned  in  every  direction. 
He  also  listened  attentively  to  all  sounds,  for  these 
might  either  be  the  forerunner  of  some  unsuspecting 

176 


THE   BURROW   SPIDER 

creature  coming  his  way,  or  the  noise  of  an  approach 
ing  enemy,  and  he  had  many  of  these  and  needed  to 
be  wary  to  escape  them.  But  he  neither  saw  nor 
heard  anything.  He  was  obliged  to  return  hungry  to 
his  hole,  and  this  happened  the  next  day  and  the  next. 

Time  went  on,  and  food  at  last  became  so  scarce 
that  the  spider  determined  upon  leaving  his  old  bur 
row  and  going  in  search  of  a  better  place  to  build  a 
new  home.  He  accordingly  did  so.  He  had  to  travel 
very  cautiously,  for  fear  of  enemies,  for  now  he  had 
no  burrow  with  a  trap-door  to  protect  him.  At  the 
least  suspicious  sound  he  hid  under  a  leaf,  the  bark  of 
a  tree,  in  some  dark  corners,  or  under  some  root. 

After  long  exploration,  he  came  at  last  to  a  place 
where  he  thought  the  soil  was  right  for  digging  a  bur 
row,  and  the  neighborhood  and  ground  seemed  to  be 
good  for  prey. 

Having  chosen  the  spot,  he  began  to  dig  with  his 
forelegs,  using  his  head  at  times  to  help.  He  worked 
very  hard  indeed.  After  his  burrow  had  reached  a 
depth  of  several  inches,  he  stopped,  saying,  "  My 
abode  is  now  deep  enough." 

He  then  began  his  most  difficult  work.  Digging 
the  burrow  was  nothing  compared  with  what  he  had 
to  do  now,  which  was  to  make  an  inside  casing 
throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  his  burrow,  to 
keep  the  earth  from  caving  in. 

To  spin  and  weave  the  lining  of  his  burrow  was  so 
great  a  task  that  it  called  for  careful  thinking,  much 
ingenuity,  and  great  skill.  So  he  went  to  work,  spun, 


12 


THE  WORLD  OF   THE  GREAT  FOREST 

and  interlaced  the  threads  in  such  a  way  that  the 
material,  when  finished,  was  a  thick  and  compact 
mass  something  like  felt. 

When  the  casing  had  reached  the  mouth  of  the 
burrow,  the  iboboti  stopped,  for  now  he  had  to  make 
the  trap-door,  a  difficult  piece  of  mechanism.  The 
door  had  to  be  round  and  of  exactly  the  size  of  the 
opening  of  the  burrow,  so  as  to  fit  closely.  To  suc 
ceed  in  his  task,  the  spider  had  to  make  no  mistake 
in  his  measurements. 

The  top  of  the  door  was  made  fast  to  the  casing  by 
a  kind  of  hinge.  When  it  was  finished,  he  let  it  fall 
to  see  how  it  worked.  It  fitted  perfectly,  and  was  so 
tight  that  not  even  the  tiniest  ant  could  get  in. 

The  spider  was  delighted  with  his  handiwork  and 
the  secure  home  he  had  made.  "  But/'  he  said  to 
himself,  "  the  door  outside  must  look  exactly  like  the 
earth  surrounding  it."  So  he  covered  the  outside  of 
the  door  with  earth,  which  stuck  to  it,  making  it  fast 
by  mixing  the  earth  with  some  secretion.  After  this 
no  creature  could  tell  where  the  door  was. 

The  spider  was  very  contented,  and  said  :  "  It  will  be 
difficult  for  my  enemies,  as  they  prowl  around,  to  find 
where  I  live;  and  when  my  door  is  shut,  I  shall  feel 
safe  from  those  horrid  wasps,  ants,  and  my  other 
enemies,  —  I  hate  them  all  !  " 

He  then  raised  the  trap  and  made  it  fast,  so  that  it 
would  not  fall  down,  and  from  the  opening  of  his 
dwelling  he  watched  for  prey.  His  body  could  not 
be  seen,  as  it  was  hidden  by  the  darkness  of  the  bur- 

178 


THE    BURROW   SPIDER 


row 


had  not  been  long  on  the  watch  when  he 

heard  the  footsteps 
of  a  large  fly  walking 
toward  his  burrow. 
His  wicked  eyes 
glittered  with  fierce 
joy  at  the  prospect 
of  a  meal,  and  he 
i  prepared  to  attack 


his  unsuspect 
ing  victim, 
who  was  moving  straight 
to  his  doom. 

When  the  fly  came  in 
sight,  the  spider  ran  out 
at  full  speed  toward  the 
poor  creature,  seized  him 
with  his  pincers,  dragged 
him  inside  of  the  burrow, 
and  then  devoured  his 
body,  except  his  tiny  legs 
and  wings,  which  he  threw 
aside,  as  they  had  no  juice 
or  blood  in  them. 

The  fly,  however,  was 
not  big  enough  to  make 


179 


THE   WORLD   OF   THE  GREAT    FOREST 

him  a  full  meal.  He  was  still  very  hungry,  and  this 
time  he  prowled  outside,  but  always  remaining  within 
sight  of  his  burrow,  stopping  now  and  then  in  a  good 
place  of  vantage  to  watch  for  victims. 

Suddenly  he  heard  the  noise  made  by  the  wings  of 
a  wasp  that  was  flying  about,  and  was  himself  looking- 
for  prey.  Seized  with  fear,  the  spider  ran  to  his  bur 
row  as  fast  as  his  legs  could  carry  him,  and,  when 
inside,  closed  the  door.  He  had  escaped  in  the  nick 
of  time ;  the  wasp,  with  his  extraordinary  powers  of 
vision,  had  sighted  him  at  once,  and  came  within  an 
ace  of  catching  him. 

The  spider,  once  inside,  felt  safe  and  hugged  himself, 
as  he  said  :  "  How  lucky  I  am  to  have  escaped  with 
my  life  from  this  wicked  wasp !  They  are  always 
after  us  poor  spiders.  How  we  hate  them  ! 

"  Several  gifts  have  been  given  to  us  trap-door 
spiders,*7  he  mused,  "so  that  we  can  get  our  living 
and  escape  our  enemies;  but  even  with  all  these 
we  cannot  always  save  ourselves.  For  our  enemies  are 
wary,  cunning,  and  treacherous,  and  often  get  the  better 
of  us;  fortunately  we  have  very  sharp  ears  and  eyes/' 

While  the  spider  was  hiding  in  his  burrow  for  fear 
of  the  wasp,  it  happened  that  a  fierce,  black  mogara 
ant,  about  one  inch  long,  was  also  watching  for  prey 
from  his  own  dark  burrow. 

While  waiting,  the  mogara  said  to  himself:  "We 
mogaras  live  alone  in  our  burrows,  and  though  they 
seem  alike  to  others,  they  are  different,  and  each  can 
recognize  his  own. 

180 


THE    BURROW   SPIDER 

"  We  are  brave,  and  not  afraid  to  attack  prey  much 
larger  and  stronger  than  ourselves,  for  we  know  the 
vulnerable  parts  of  those  we  fight.  We  hold  our  legs 
to  the  ground  to  prevent  them  from  escaping,  and  our 
pincers  do  the  rest.  One  who  is  timid  gets  no  prey. 
Oh,  how  I  should  like  a  spider  for  my  next  meal !  " 

The  mogara  watched  for  a  while,  but  as  no  prey 
came  in  sight,  he  left  his  burrow  and  prowled  around 
in  search  of  food.  He  ran  across  a  dead  mogara,  and 
carried  it  to  his  burrow  and  devoured  it  in  the  dark 
ness.  But  this  was  not  sufficient  for  him,  so  he  went 
foraging  again,  and  saw  an  ozoni  ant.  The  ozonis  were 
also  prowling  everywhere  for  prey.  They  are  smaller 
than  the  mogaras,  but  are  terribly  voracious. 

This  ozoni  said :  "I  am  famished,  and  if  I  find  no 
prey  I  must  attack  one  of  my  own  kind  and  eat  him," 
for  the  ozonis  are  cannibals,  feeding  often  on  one  an 
other.  Upon  this,  looking  around,  he  saw  an  ozoni 
smaller  than  himself  not  far  off,  and  he  ran  after  him. 
The  fight  was  fierce.  The  weaker  one  realized  that 
he  was  fighting  for  his  life.  He  succeeded  in  escap 
ing  from  the  clutches  of  his  enemy,  and  ran  as  fast  as 
he  could  ;  but  he  had  been  somewhat  disabled  in  the 
fight,  and  was  recaptured.  "  Oh  !  "  said  the  victorious 
ozoni,  "  you  thought  you  would  escape  from  me,  but 
you  cannot,  and  now  I  am  going  to  eat  you  up  ! " 
which  he  speedily  proceeded  to  do. 

Meanwhile  the  spider  was  unaware  of  what  was 
taking  place  among  the  mogara  and  ozoni  ants,  while 
he  was  shut  up  in  his  burrow.  When  he  thought  the 

181 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE  GREAT  FOREST 

wasp  must  have  got  a  long  way  off,  he  once  more  raised 
the  trap -door.  Seeing  a  grasshopper  passing  by,  he 
attacked  the  creature  with  great  fury,  and  after  a  stub 
born  fight  carried  him  into  his  abode. 

Having  made  an  excellent  meal  of  his  last  victim, 
and  not  being  hungry  any  more,  the  spider  said : 
"  Now  I  am  going  to  shut  my  door  and  have  a  good 
sleep." 

After  his  sleep,  he  again  opened  his  door  and 
watched.  In  the  distance  he  saw  a  big  mogara  ant 
and  also  an  ozoni  ant.  They  were  looking  for  prey, 
and  for  trap-door  spiders.  They  were  going  in  an 
other  direction,  away  from  the  burrow  of  the  spider, 
who  accordingly  was  not  frightened,  but  watched  until 
they  were  out  of  sight. 

"  How  I  hate  the  ants  !  "  thought  the  spider,  "  es 
pecially  these  horrid  mogara  and  ozoni  ants ;  they  are 
quite  as  fierce  as  the  wasps,  and  almost  as  dangerous. 
If  we  spiders  had  our  own  way,  we  would  kill  them  all.'' 
He  did  not  reflect  that  they  had  to  live  in  the  way  the 
spiders  did,  —  that  is,  by  killing  other  creatures.  The 
spiders  have  their  own  point  of  view  in  regard  to 
wasps,  ants,  and  other  enemies ;  but  these  latter  had 
also  a  different  point  of  view  in  regard  to  spiders,  and 
no  wonder,  for  their  interests  differ. 

Weeks  passed  away  in  this  round  of  hunting  and 
sleeping.  One  day  the  spider  had  gone  out  of  his 
burrow  and  was  in  a  good  place  to  watch  for  prey. 
Suddenly  there  appeared  behind  him  at  some  distance 
upon  an  eminence  three  mogara  ants  that  were  out 


THE   BURROW   SPIDER 

foraging.  They  saw  the  spider  at  once,  and  made  for 
him,  for  they  were  hungry. 

They  walked  as  lightly  as  they  could,  for  fear  that 
their  intended  victim  would  hear  thsm,  for  they  knew 
how  well  trap-door  spiders  can  hear. 

Soon  the  spider  was  surrounded,  and  then  his 
enemies  attacked  him  immediately.  One  of  the 
mogara  ants  gave  him  a  fierce  bite  that  laid  open  his 
abdomen  and  disabled  him  ;  the  others  joined  in  the 
fight,  which  was  soon  over,  and  then  they  make  a  good 
feast  of  him.  Such  was  the  end  of  the  spider  who  had, 
in  his  time,  killed  so  many  insects  during  his  adven 
turous  life. 


CHAPTER   XXIX 

THE    HOUSE    IBOBOTI,    OR    NIGHT    SPIDER 

ONE  night  a  large  gray  house  spider  said  to  him 
self:  "  My  kin  lives  in  the  huts  of  people.  It 
will  soon  be  daylight,  and  I  must  find  a  place  where  I 
can  hide  myself  during  the  day.  Darkness  is  the  time 
when  I  thrive,  for  then  I  can  see  well  and  prey  upon 
the  creatures  which  prowl  on  the  walls." 

After  saying  this,  the  house  spider  moved  toward 
a  corner  to  hide.  He  knew  every  crack  and  place  of 
shelter  on  the  wall,  for  he  had  lived  in  the  house  a 
long  time.  After  he  had  found  a  good  hiding-place, 
he  said  :  "  This  is  a  nice  spot ;  no  light  will  reach  me ; 
no  enemy  will  see  me.  I  shall  sleep  well,"  then  he 
settled  himself  comfortably  for  the  day. 

"  I  spin  no  web,"  he  mused,  "  to  snare  and  kill  those 
upon  whom  I  feed.  I  must  prepare  myself  for  hard 
fighting ;  I  have  to  be  bold  and  brave.  I  must  not  be 
afraid  to  attack  the  creatures  that  are  much  larger  and 
stronger  than  myself.  Great  gifts  have  been  given  to 
me,  so  that  I  may  get  my  living ;  but  I  have  to  work 
hard  to  get  it,  and  to  use  all  my  intelligence  and  cun 
ning." 

Thinking  thus,  the  spider  looked  at  his  legs,  and 
said :  "  These  claws  that  are  like  hooks  at  the  end  are 
invaluable  to  me.  They  help  me  in  my  conflicts 

184 


HOUSE    IBOBOTI,    OR    NIGHT   SPIDER 

after  I  have  pounced  upon  my  prey.  They  hold  fast 
to  the  wall,  so  that  I  may  not  be  carried  away  by  those 
that  are  much  larger  and  stronger  than  I  am.  Oh, 
how  hard  I  have  to  fight  sometimes !  I  have  two 
other  great  gifts,  —  the  sense  of  hearing,  for  I  can  hear 
the  steps  of  flies  and  insects  upon  the  walls,  and  their 
sounds  guide  me  toward  them  even  before  I  can  see 
them,  though  keen  sight  is  also  given  to  me.  Another 
advantage  I  have  is,  that  my  body  is  very  much  of  the 
color  of  the  bark  walls,  so  that  I  am  not  easily  seen 
by  the  creatures  that  prowl  at  night  and  walk  from  one 
place  to  another/* 

The  day  passed  away,  night  came,  and  the  spider 
awoke.  He  looked  around  for  a  point  from  which  he 
could  hear  and  see  his  prey.  After  finding  the  spot, 
he  stretched  his  legs  on  the  bark  so  that  his  body  lay 
flat  on  the  surface,  and  remained  as  if  dead,  so  as  to 
deceive  the  creatures  moving  on  the  walls.  He  was 
now  all  eyes  and  ears. 

At  the  same  time  that  the  spider  was  getting  ready 
for  his  prey,  the  cockroaches,  from  the  cracks  and 
other  places  where  they  hide  during  the  day,  said : 
cc  Now  it  is  dark,  and  we  can  see  well ;  let  us  go  out  from 
our  hiding-places  and  rummage  around  the  walls  and 
seek  for  food,  for  we  are  hungry."  As  the  night  ad 
vanced,  they  began  to  swarm  out  of  their  cracks  and 
holes,  running  along  the  walls  with  great  speed,  and 
sometimes  flying  about.  Some  of  them  were  nearly 
two  and  a  half  inches  long. 

The  house  spider,  with  its  glittering  and  voracious 

'85 


THE    WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT   FOREST 

eyes,  bided  his  time  patiently.  Soon  he  heard  the 
footsteps  of  a  cockroach,  and  from  his  sounds  knew 
that  he  was  a  very  large  one.  To  the  spider  the  foot 
steps  of  the  roach  sounded  as  heavy  as  those  of  an 
elephant  to  a  human  being. 

Then,  guided  by  these  sounds,  the  spider  moved 
toward  them,  lying  very  flat  as  he  walked,  and  soon 
saw  the  cockroach.  It  was  a  very  large  black  one,  and 
he  said :  "  I  must  get  ready  for  a  big  fight,"  and  then 
attacked  it  from  behind.  In  an  instant  he  was  on  the 
back  of  the  cockroach,  with  his  pincers  fastened  on  his 
neck,  for  he  knew  that  this  was  the  only  vulnerable 
part,  and  laying  hold  on  the  wall  with  the  hooks  of 
his  legs,  he  began  to  suck  the  juice-like  blood  of  his 
victim. 

There  was  a  long  and  terrible  struggle  between  the 
two,  one  trying  to  kill,  the  other  to  run  away  from  its 
mortal  enemy.  The  cockroach  made  frantic  efforts 
to  escape  from  the  spider,  and  would  have  done  so  if 
it  had  not  been  for  the  strength  with  which  the  hooks 
held  on  to  the  wall.  But  although  stronger,  the  cock 
roach  could  not  get  the  spider  from  his  neck  except  in 
one  way,  by  rushing  through  a  crack  where  it  could 
just  pass,  and  by  so  doing  either  crush  the  spider  or 
oblige  him  to  let  go  his  hold.  This  the  cockroach  tried 
to  do.  But  the  spider  knew  this,  and  made  desperate 
efforts  to  hold  on  as  hard  as  he  could,  and  keep  the 
cockroach  fast. 

Still,  in  spite  of  all  the  efforts  of  the  spider,  the 
cockroach  escaped,  and  ran  as  fast  as  he  could,  the 

186 


HOUSE   IBOBOTI,   OR   NIGHT   SPIDER 

spider  pursuing  him,  and  once  more  climbing  on  his 
back,  with  his  mouth  fixed  in  his  neck,  and  then  fol 
lowed  another  struggle  for  life.  The  tussle  was  again 
a  very  fierce  one.  The  spider  was  fastening  his  mouth 
deeper  and  deeper  into  the  neck  of  the  cockroach,  and 
was  sucking  his  blood.  At  last,  the  victim  began  to 
lose  his  strength,  his  efforts  to  escape  became  feebler 
and  feebler,  and  he  became  helpless,  for  his  strength 
was  gone.  The  spider,  after  a  fight  that  had  lasted 
half  an  hour,  was  victorious,  and  he  dragged  his  victim 
to  a  convenient  place  and  finished  him.  This  done, 
he  lay  in  wait  for  another  victim. 

Before  dawn  all  was  once  more  quiet  in  the  house. 
The  house  spider  had  gone  to  his  dark  place,  and  the 
cockroaches  had  hidden  in  their  cracks. 

The  poor  cockroaches  had  a  hard  time ;  for,  besides 
the  wall  spiders,  they  had  another  enemy  in  the  night 
lizard  that  dwelt  in  the  house.  These  lizards  also 
had  a  great  gift  to  suit  their  mode  of  life.  They  were 
very  quick,  and  ran  fast.  During  the  day  they  hid 
themselves  between  pieces  of  bark.  They  could  see 
so  well  that  nothing  escaped  their  eyes,  even  in  the 
darkness,  and  their  color  was  exactly  the  color  of  the 
bark  walls,  so  that  they  were  not  to  be  seen  by  the 
cockroaches  upon  which  they  lived.  Like  the  spider, 
they  stood  perfectly  motionless  while  waiting  for  prey. 

It  is  a  good  thing  for  the  human  beings  that  there 
are  house  spiders  and  house  lizards  to  eat  up  the 
cockroaches,  otherwise  men  could  not  live  in  their 
homes. 

187 


CHAPTER   XXX 

THE    NYOI,    OR    WASP,    AND    THE    IBOBOTI 

A  WASP,  putting  her  head  out  of  one  of  the  win 
dows  of  her  nest  which  was  hanging  on  the 
branch   of  a   tree  in   the  forest   on   the   border  of  a 
prairie,  exclaimed  one  day :  — 

"  How  beautiful  the  weather  is  now  !  How  hard  it 
rained  last  night !  I  could  hear  the  rain  falling  on 
our  roof;  but  we  have  constructed  our  dwelling  with 
so  much  skill  that  no  water  can  come  into  our  abode. 
What  a  comfortable  home  we  have  built  for  ourselves  ! 
It  seems  so  cosey  and  warm  in  the  combs  and  cells 
where  we  raise  our  young ! 

"  Outside,  now,  the  sun  is  shining,  and  it  is  very 
warm.  This  is  a  fine  day  to  get  my  living,  for  there 
will  be  plenty  of  prey.  I  am  hungry  !  I  am  hungry  !  " 

This  wasp  was  beautifully  striped.  When  on  the 
wing,  she  was  very  graceful  in  her  movements ;  her 
long  thin  legs  were  as  fine  as  a  silk  thread,  and  in  flying 
she  was  so  swift  that  she  was  out  of  sight  in  an  in 
stant,  while  her  eyes  at  the  same  time  took  in  every 
thing  at  a  glance. 

No  one  but  the  creatures  upon  whom  she  preyed 
could  ever  guess  that  this  beautiful  wasp  was  so  fierce 
and  full  of  fight. 

1 88 


NYOI,    OR   WASP,   AND    THE    IBOBOTI 

The  wasp  said  to  herself:  "Great  gifts  have  been 
given  to  me  with  which  to  get  my  living.  My  long 
legs  are  fine  weapons,  and  help  me  to  prevent  my 
victims  from  moving  when  I  attack  them ;  and  my 
sharp  nippers  cut  so  well ;  and  when  I  fly  I  can  pick 
out  at  once  the  creatures  I  like  best  to  eat.  I  am  dainty 
in  my  taste.  How  delicious  and  juicy  the  spiders  are  ! 
I  hope  I  shall  catch  one  very  soon,  for  I  am  hungry." 

The  wasp  kept  on  flying,  covering  a  large  space  in 
her  sweep.  Finally  she  saw  in  the  distance  the  village 
where  lived  the  house  spider  who  had  such  a  fight 
with  the  cockroach  and  who  had  succeeded  in  killing 
him  and  eating  him  up. 

At  the  sight  of  the  village,  the  wasp  was  delighted, 
and  said :  "  Surely  I  shall  find  in  some  of  the  houses 
a  wall  spider  or  two." 

Soon  after,  she  was  in  the  street,  and  began  to  enter 
house  after  house,  though  the  human  beings  that  were 
there  drove  her  away.  But  in  some  there  were  no  peo 
ple,  and  she  could  fly  all  over  without  being  molested. 

At  last  she  entered  the  house  where  the  house 
spider  was  who  had  devoured  the  cockroach.  She 
flew  around.  She  caught  sight  of  a  spider.  Its  dull 
gray  color  could  not  escape  her. 

The  acute  hearing  of  the  spider  soon  told  him  that 
a  wasp,  his  most  dreaded  enemy,  was  in  the  house, 
and  he  was  seized  with  great  fear,  for  he  knew  his  life 
was  in  danger.  He  lay  as  flat  as  he  could  on  the  wall 
and  did  not  move,  hoping  not  to  be  discovered. 

But  his  efforts  were  of  no  avail.  In  a  flash  the 

189 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

wasp  was  right  over  the  spider,  almost  touching  his 
body, —  all  her  efforts  and  intelligence  concentrated  in 
the  capture  and  destruction  of  her  victim.  She  darted 
her  legs  at  their  full  length  between  the  legs  of  the 
spider,  striking  them  incessantly  to  prevent  him  from 
moving,  and  so  rapidly  that  they  could  hardly  be  seen, 
while  at  the  same  time  she  gave  constant  bites  in  the 
back  of  his  neck.  Faster  and  faster  moved  her  legs. 


When  the  wasp  thought  she  had  crippled  the  spider 
enough,  she  drew  backward,  her  head  moving  down, 
and  her  nippers  cut  his  right  leg  near  its  junction  with 
his  body.  She  moved  forward  again,  and  bit  the  neck 
once  more,  and  after  this  cut  his  left  front  leg.  The 
six  legs  were  cut  off,  one  after  the  other,  in  this  way. 
During  the  whole  fight  the  spider  seemed  benumbed, 
and  after  the  last  leg  had  dropped  the  wasp  flew  away 
with  the  body  to  devour  it  at  her  ease. 

190 


CHAPTER   XXXI 

THE    TWO    NKENGOS,    OR    PALE-FACED    APES 

IN  the  midst  of  the  dark  foliage  of  a  group  of  trees 
stood  two  pale  yellow-faced  nkengos  (men  of 
the  woods).  Strange,  indeed,  looked  their  yellow, 
wrinkled,  parchment-like  faces,  in  the  midst  of  the 
green  leaves  that  surrounded  them.  They  were 
almost  like  the  faces  of  white  human  beings  after  a 
long  illness,  but  darker. 

They  had  met  toward  evening  near  their  two 
bowers,  as  was  their  habit,  when  they  had  to  separate  to 
seek  food  during  the  day.  Suddenly  the  smaller  one 
said  to  his  mate  :  "  I  saw  a  strange  being  to-day,  the 
like  of  whom  you  and  I  have  never  seen  during  our 
lives.  He  had  a  pale  face  like  ours,  and  very  long, 
black,  shaggy  hair,  as  black  as  ours,  fell  from  his  head 
low  down  on  his  back.  He  walked  quite  erect,  had 
long  legs,  much  longer  than  ours,  and  a  shorter  body  ; 
his  arms  were  also  much  shorter  than  ours.  All  I 
could  see  was  his  pale  face  and  his  short  white  hands, 
and  his  whole  body  was  unlike  these  in  color.  I  can 
not  explain  what  this  was,  for  I  have  never  seen  the 
like  of  it  before.  Strange  to  say,  his  feet  were  black 
and  not  of  the  color  of  his  face,  and  he  had  no  toes. 
He  carried  something  like  a  stick.  He  looked  at  me 

191 


THE  WORLD  OF   THE  GREAT  FOREST 


with  such  peculiar  eyes  that  I  was  dreadfully  fright 
ened,  and  I  fled.     Then  I  heard  coming  from  him  a 

192 


TWO  NKENGOS,  OR   PALE-FACED  APES 

terrible  noise  like  a  clap  of  thunder,  and  something 
whistled  by  like  a  sharp  insect,  and  made  a  gash  in  a 
tree  ahead  of  me.  I  ran  as  fast  as  my  legs  would  carry 
me,  and  escaped  him,  and  I  am  safe  by  your  side." 

The  old  nkengo  listened  attentively.  Then  after 
his  mate  had  stopped,  he  replied :  "  Truly,  you  give 
me  strange  news.  Are  you  sure  it  was  not  a  nkengo 
like  ourselves  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  she  replied ;  "  I  am  sure  this  strange  creature 
was  not  a  nkengo." 

"  How  sure  are  you,"  he  asked  again,  "  that  he  was 
not  one  of  these  human  beings  that  we  see  sometimes 
in  our  forest  ?  " 

"  No,"  she  answered ;  cc  the  human  beings  we  see 
have  not  that  color,  neither  have  they  long  black  hair 
like  his.  He  had  their  shape,  but  his  body  was  not 
like  theirs  or  ours." 

No  wonder  that  the  nkengo  had  been  astonished 
and  frightened  in  seeing  the  pale-faced  human  being, 
with  long  shaggy  hair  hanging  over  his  shoulders,  for 
he  was  the  first  of  his  kind  that  had  entered  the  heart 
of  the  big  forest.  His  face  had  color  before  he  came 
to  that  land  of  trees,  but  fever,  hunger,  and  all  kinds 
of  hardships  had  taken  that  color  away  and  made  his 
face  lemon-yellow  and  pale  as  that  of  the  nkengos. 

His  country  was  in  the  west,  toward  the  north, 
across  the  great  sea,  and  had  snow  and  ice,  winter, 
spring,  summer,  and  autumn,  instead  of  a  rainy  and 
dry  season  and  summer  all  the  time.  The  stick  the 
nkengo  thought  he  carried,  was  his  gun,  and  the  clap 
13  193 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

of  thunder  she  heard,  was  when  he  fired  that  gun  ;  the 
whistle  and  the  thing  that  struck  the  tree  was  the  bul 
let  he  had  fired  at  her.  His  black  feet  without  toes 
were  his  shoes.  What  covered  his  body  was  his 
clothes.  He  had  come  to  that  forest  to  see  the  won 
derful  animals  that  lived  in  it,  and  to  study  their  habits 
and  those  of  the  wild  human  beings.  His  name  was 
Paul. 

The  two  nkengos  were  much  disturbed  during  the 
night,  for  they  could  not  sleep,  and  were  thinking  all  the 
time  of  the  human  being  with  a  pale  face  like  theirs, 
and  of  his  long  dark  hair  and  the  thunder  that  came 
out  of  the  stick. 

The  following  morning,  after  they  had  come  down 
from  their  respective  bowers  and  trees,  they  walked 
for  a  little  while  together,  and  then  separated  to  go 
after  berries,  nuts,  and  fruits,  for  there  were  not  enough 
of  these  together  for  the  two.  They  agreed  to  keep 
near  each  other.  So  now  and  then  their  voices  could 
be  heard  calling  out  as  they  moved  along  in  the  great 
forest. 

The  big  nkengo  found  a  place  with  trees  full  of 
nuts  and  called  to  his  mate  to  come  and  partake  of  the 
feast.  When  they  met  they  were  glad  and  had  a 
grand  time  eating  nuts.  When  they  could  eat  no 
more,  it  was  about  time  to  return  to  their  bowers, 
which  were  distant  about  half  a  day's  journey.  On 
their  way  back,  they  met  a  very  old  nkengo  with  a 
face  full  of  furrows  and  wrinkles.  He  was  so  old  that 
he  had  lost  all  his  teeth  but  five.  He  was  stiff  with 

194 


TWO   NKENGOS,  OR   PALE-FACED  APES 

rheumatism  and  pain  and  could  hardly  walk.  "  How 
are  you,  dear  old  nkengo  ? "  they  inquired  with  looks 
of  pity  on  their  faces. 

He  answered  :  "  I  am  old  and  shall  soon  die.  I 
wander  alone  in  the  forest,  for  I  cannot  follow  the 
other  nkengos.  They  walk  too  fast  for  me.  I  have 
hardly  any  teeth,  and  now  I  can  only  feed  on  leaves. 
I  have  not  the  strength  to  go  after  fruits,  for  I  cannot 
climb  trees  as  I  used  to  do.  All  I  am  able  to  do  is  to 
hoist  myself  on  some  tree  to  sleep.  I  cannot  make 
bowers  any  more.  A  leopard  will  probably  eat  me 
one  of  these  days,  for  I  am  unable  to  defend  myself. 
My  mate  is  dead." 

Then  they  said  :  "  Dear  old  nkengo,  we  are  sorry 
for  you.  We  pity  you.  We  wish  we  could  be  with 
you,  but  life  is  a  struggle.  We  have  often  to  go  far 
away  during  the  day  to  get  our  living,  and  if  we  were 
to  stay  with  you  we  should  starve,  for  we  hate  leaves, 
and  they  are  not  sufficient  to  satisfy  our  hunger. 
Good-by.  Good-by." 

And  the  poor  old  nkengo  was  left  to  himself  to 
finish  his  life  in  the  best  way  he  could. 

Two  or  three  days  after  they  had  met  the  old 
nkengo,  the  big  one  said  to  his  mate,  as  they  returned 
to  their  bowers  in  the  evening  :  "  When  we  built  our 
bower  here  some  days  ago,  our  place  at  first  was  sur 
rounded  by  fruits,  nuts,  and  berries.  The  trees  were 
full  of  them.  We  had  but  a  little  way  to  go  to  find  our 
food,  but  as  usual  every  day  we  had  to  go  a  little  far 
ther,  as  we  had  eaten  everything  around  here.  It 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

takes  so  much  to  feed  us  daily.  Now  we  have  to  go 
so  far  that  it  almost  takes  the  whole  day  to  go  to  and 
from  our  shelter  before  it  gets  dark.  We  must  find 
another  country  where  food  is  plentiful ;  for  two  or 
three  days  past  we  have  not  eaten  enough  to  satisfy 
our  appetites. 

"  Let  us  journey  to-morrow  morning  to  that  part  of 
the  forest  where  we  know  that  at  this  moon  of  the 
rainy  season  we  shall  find  plenty  to  eat.  We  shall  be 
there  in  two  days  if  we  travel  fast,  and  hope  to  arrive 
before  the  monkeys  and  the  ngoas  and  men  of  the 
woods  make  their  appearance,  and  eat  everything,  and 
leave  nothing  for  us."  His  mate  agreed  with  him,  and 
they  ascended  their  trees  and  lay  down  in  their  bowers. 

Before  daybreak  the  guinea  fowls  and  the  partridges 
by  their  cackling  announced  that  daylight  was  soon 
coming.  By  this  time  all  the  nocturnal  animals  had 
retired  to  their  hiding-places,  some  in  their  burrows, 
others  in  the  holes  of  trees  or  in  other  dark  places. 

The  nkengo  said  to  his  mate,  "  The  partridges  and 
the  guinea  fowls  have  told  all  those  who  get  their  liv 
ing  in  daylight  that  the  dawn  is  coming,  and  that  the 
sun  will  soon  rise.  As  soon  as  we  can  see,  we  will 
begin  our  journey."  A  little  while  after,  they  started 
and  found  the  food  very  scanty  as  they  went  along, 
as  they  were  travelling  over  the  ground  they  had  been 
over  before. 

By  the  afternoon  they  had  come  to  a  new  land 
where  berries,  nuts,  and  fruits  began  to  be  plentiful, 
and  they  were  very  glad.  But  they  were  very  sus- 

196 


TWO   NKENGOS,  OR  PALE-FACED  APES 

picious  also,  for  since  one  of  them  had  seen  the  pale- 
faced  human  being  with  long  black  hair  they  were 
more  shy  than  they  ever  had  been  before,  and  they 
were  in  constant  dread  of  meeting  him  with  his  stick, 
which  sent  forth  claps  of  thunder. 

Their  wild  and  eager  eyes  glanced  in  every  direc 
tion,  trying  to  pierce  through  the  forest,  and  they 
listened  to  every  noise  they  heard,  fearing  that  it  was 
he  that  was  coming.  The  sense  of  hearing  of  the 
men  of  the  woods  is  so  keen  that  they  can  hear  the 
slightest  noise  a  long  way  off.  During  the  day  they 
had  been  alarmed  several  times. 

Toward  evening  the  nkengo  said :  "  To-night  we 
will  sleep  upon  the  branches  of  trees,  and  early  to 
morrow  we  will  go  farther  and  see  if  food  is  still  plen 
tiful  ;  and  if  it  is,  we  will  find  two  trees  upon  which  to 
build  our  bowers.  I  am  glad  that  we  have  found 
no  traces  of  nginas,  nshiegos,  mbouves,  and  kooloo- 
kambas,  so  we  are  the  first  on  the  ground/*  and  he 
grinned  when  he  said  this,  for  he  thought  of  the 
grand  time  and  fine  feasting  they  were  to  have. 

"  But/'  he  added,  "  I  hope  the  nginas  will  not 
make  their  appearance  when  we  are  here,  for  we  can 
not  fight  them,  they  are  so  strong.  We  shall  have  to 
give  way  to  them,  otherwise  they  would  break  our 
ribs  with  a  blow  of  their  strong  arms  and  kill  us." 

The  sun  had  just  set.  It  was  getting  dark  in  the 
forest.  The  nkengos  ascended  two  trees  and  bade 
each  other  good-night.  Early  the  following  morning 
they  explored  the  country  farther  and  continued  to 

197 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

meet  with  plenty  of  nuts,  fruits,  and  a  few  berries, 
and  some  nice  juicy  canes  Before  noon,  they  stopped 
and  said :  "  This  country  is  good ;  food  is  plentiful ; 
let  us  build  our  bowers  here,  for  we  shall  have  food 
all  around  us/' 

The  two  trees  they  were  looking  for  were  not  so 
easy  to  find.  They  had  to  be  almost  side  by  side. 
After  a  tedious  search  the  big  nkengo  found  them. 
He  called  aloud  for  his  mate,  who  answered  him,  then 
shouted  to  her  that  he  had  found  the  trees  they  were 
in  search  of.  The  first  transverse  limbs  of  these 
trees  were  high  up  (at  least  twenty-five  or  thirty  feet 
above  the  ground),  and  there  was  no  jungle  round 
them.  These  limbs  upon  which  they  could  build 
their  bowers  were  covered  with  branches,  strong  and 
slender,  which  they  could  twist  together.  After  look 
ing  at  them,  the  big  nkengo  said  to  his  mate  who  had 
come  up,  "  The  leopards  will  not  be  able  to  climb 
these  trees,  and  the  big  omembas  will  not  be  able  to 
crawl  from  other  trees  to  ours."  They  each  ascended 
one  of  the  trees  and  began  to  make  their  own  bowers 
by  intertwining  their  branches.  They  made  them  in 
the  shape  of  a  slightly  hollow  dish,  put  leaves  inside, 
and  when  they  were  ready,  they  said  to  each  other, 
"  What  fine  bowers  we  have  made  !  We  could  not 
have  found  better  trees.  How  well  we  shall  sleep  in 
them  !  "  Then  they  gave  peculiar  guttural  sounds, 
such  as  the  nkengos  make  when  they  are  satisfied. 
That  night  they  slept  soundly. 

Early  in  the  morning  they  awoke  and  greeted  each 

198 


TWO   NKENGOS,  OR  PALE-FACED  APES 

other  by  saying,  "Whoe,  whoe,"  which  meant  some 
thing  like  "  Good- 
morning."  Then 
they  said, cc  Our  bow 
ers  were  rather  hard 
last  night,  but  in  two 
or  three  days  the 
branches  will  have 
bent  to  our  shape." 

They  descended 
and  came  toward  each 
other.  That  day 


%*  V^ 

I    Sy^iTj  \."fe-'> 


they  had  not  far 
to  go  to  get  food, 
for  some  of  the 
trees  close  to  their 
new  home  were 
loaded  with  fruit. 
They  ascended 
these  by  catching 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

their  lower  branches  with  their  hands  and  holding  fast, 
then  pulling  themselves  up  with  their  muscular  arms. 
They  ate  so  much  that  they  had  to  lie  down  on  their 
backs  in  their  bowers  and  take  a  good  rest.  In  the 
afternoon  they  went  out  for  another  meal,  and  did 
not  return  until  sunset. 

The  following  day  the  nkengos,  having  found  a 
great  deal  of  food,  returned  to  their  bowers  earlier 
than  usual,  for,  like  all  the  men  of  the  woods,  when 
they  have  no  appetite  to  stir  them  up,  they  are  very 
lazy  and  like  either  to  stay  in  one  place  or  loiter 
about. 

As  they  were  ready  to  ascend  their  trees,  suddenly 
the  old  nkengo  said  to  his  mate,  "  Listen  !  listen  ! " 
The  countenances  of  the  two  changed  immediately  ; 
they  stood  up ;  they  became  all  ears,  and  their  faces 
wore  a  peculiar  wild,  anxious  look. 

The  old  nkengo  was  right.  They  heard  an  un 
usual,  strange  noise,  as  if  all  the  tops  of  the  trees 
were  being  shaken  by  a  strong  wind.  This  strange 
noise  became  more  distinct  as  it  approached.  Louder 
and  louder  it  grew,  and  they  recognized  the  footsteps 
of  the  elephants  tramping  through  the  jungle.  The 
njokoos  were  coming  toward  them.  They  ascended 
their  trees  quickly,  and  in  a  short  time  a  herd  of 
njokoos  passed  at  full  speed  by  them.  They  stood 
silent  as  they  looked  upon  the  monsters,  and  finally 
said  to  each  other,  "The  njokoos  seem  to  be  in  a 
panic ;  but  why  ? " 

Their  anxiety  was  not  removed,  for  they  found  out 

200 


TWO   NKENGOS,  OR  PALE-FACED  APES 

that  the  tramping  of  the  njokoos  had  only  drowned 
the  noise  made  by  other  animals.  Then  they  said  to  each 
other,  "  The  bashikouay  ants  are  coming  our  way ; 
they  are  on  the  war-path ;  the  creatures  of  the  forest 
are  fleeing  before  them.  Let  us  also  flee  and  get  out 
of  their  way."  They  descended  and  fled  on  all  fours, 
for  with  their  great  bulky  bodies  they  could  not  make 
their  way  from  branch  to  branch  like  the  monkeys. 
But  on  the  ground  they  could  run  very  swiftly  and 
cover  more  space  in  a  given  time  than  the  monkeys. 

They  looked  very  queer,  with  their  bodies  partly 
erect  on  account  of  the  length  of  their  arms,  their 
hands  closed  and  their  fists  striking  the  ground. 

They  went  on  with  all  their  might,  crossed  over 
shallow,  clear  little  streams  with  sandy  bottoms,  and 
after  a  journey  of  some  fifty  miles  came  to  a  large 
river  they  had  never  seen  before,  and  stopped.  As 
they  looked  at  the  water,  they  saw  some  antelopes 
swimming  to  the  opposite  side,  and  said  dolefully  to 
each  other,  "  The  nkengos  cannot  swim  like  kambis, 
so  we  cannot  cross  the  rivers." 

So,  as  it  was  nearly  dark,  and  they  could  not  cross 
the  river,  they  were  forced  to  ascend  two  trees  on  their 
bank  to  spend  the  night. 

Early  the  next  morning,  having  heard  no  flight 
of  animals  during  the  night,  and  seeing  no  sign  of  the 
bashikouays,  they  retraced  their  steps  toward  their 
bowers ;  and  though  they  had  never  been  in  this  part 
of  the  forest  before,  they  knew  their  way  back.  In 
the  afternoon  they  saw  a  clump  of  trees  loaded  with 

201 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

fine  big  ripe  nuts.  Near  them  was  a  limpid  stream 
forming  a  deep  pool,  so  clear  that  they  could  see  the 
bottom.  The  pool  was  full  of  fish. 

The  two  nkengos  were  soon  on  the  nut  trees, 
giving  chuckles  of  contentment  as  they  fed.  After 
a  bountiful  repast,  they  watched  the  fish,  and  were 
much  interested  in  seeing  them  swim. 

While  the  nkengos  were  watching  the  fish,  a  very 
remarkable  little  animal,  looking  like  a  pigmy  otter, 
had  followed  the  bank  of  the  stream  and  came  to  the 
pool,  where  a  number  of  stones  piled  on  each  other 
lay  under  the  water. 

Suddenly  a  plash  was  heard,  and  the  pool  was  cov 
ered  with  ripples.  The  nkengos  thought  a  stick  or 
dead  limb  had  fallen  into  the  water,  but  looking  for  it 
they  saw  none.  The  little  otter  had  dropped  into  the 
water,  had  caused  the  ripples,  and  had  hidden  under 
the  stones  to  watch  for  fish.  He  could  see  through 
the  clear  water  as  an  eagle  can  see  through  the  air. 
Lying  under  the  stone,  he  watched  for  prey,  and  said 
to  himself,  "  What  a  delightful  morsel  a  fish  is  !  I 
am  hungry.  Surely  I  shall  get  a  meal  in  this  pool ; 
there  must  be  fish  here.'*  Then  he  awaited  his  oppor 
tunity,  his  eyes  looking  sharply  around. 

The  fish  were  not  aware  of  the  presence  of  this 
little  enemy,  their  greatest  one  except  the  bigger  fish. 
They  were  after  the  insects  and  flies  that  were  skim 
ming  over  the  water,  and  gobbling  them  as  fast  as 
they  could. 

Then  darting  from  under  the  stone,  propelled  by 

202 


TWO  NKENGOS,  OR  PALE-FACED  APES 

his  tail  with  the  quickness  of  an  arrow,  the  otter  made 
for  one  of  the  fish  and  seized  him,  after  which  he 
returned  to  his  hiding-place  to  devour  him.  The 
poor  fish  had  just  begun  his  own  dinner. 

After  looking  at  all  this,  the  nkengos  continued 
their  journey  toward  their  bowers.  They  picked  out 
food  on  their  way,  and  were  glad  when  they  reached 
their  home  that  evening.  "  To-night,"  they  said, 
"we  shall  sleep  comfortably.  How  much  better  we 
shall  rest  than  sitting  on  the  branch  of  a  tree  !  what 
a  lovely  home  we  have  built !  " 

Every  day  they  had  to  go  a  little  farther  from  their 
bowers  to  find  food.  After  ten  or  twelve  days  they 
had  to  go  so  far  that  they  decided  to  move  again  and 
build  another  shelter  somewhere  else.  And  this  they 
had  to  keep  doing  throughout  their  lives.  Time 
went  on  ;  they  moved  many  times,  but  they  never 
forgot  the  pale-faced  human  being  with  long  black 
shaggy  hair  hanging  over  his  shoulders.  They  were 
constantly  afraid  of  meeting  him. 


203 


CHAPTER   XXXII 

A  BABY  NKENGO  IS  BORN  TO  THE  OLD  NKENGOS 

ONE  day  a  tiny  baby  was  born  to  the  old  nkengos. 
He  was  yellow  in  the  face  like  his  parents ;  his 
elongated  little  hands,  with  their  slender  fingers,  and 
his  small  feet,  with  their  diminutive  toes,  could  have 
gone  through  an  ordinary  finger  ring  of  a  human 
being,  so  small  were  they. 

The  skin  of  his  body  was  somewhat  lighter  than  his 
face  and  thinly  covered  with  short  black  glossy  hair. 
His  ears  were  very  large  for  his  head.  The  palms  of 
his  tiny  hands  were  white,  but  no  sign  or  color  of 
blood  showing  through  his  skin  was  to  be  seen  on 
any  part  of  his  body. 

The  second  day  after  he  was  born  he  could  cling 
to  his  mother,  so  that  she  could  easily  carry  him. 
The  baby  nkengos  are  not  so  helpless  as  human 
babies. 

Every  evening  the  mother  took  the  little  nkengo 
to  her  bower  and  he  slept  by  her  side.  She  loved 
him  dearly  and  took  good  care  of  him,  and  saw  that 
he  was  not  cold,  and  would  cuddle  him  many  times 
during  the  day  and  night  close  to  her  breast.  The 
old  nkengos  would  often  say  to  each  other,  "  Let  us 
take  good  care  of  our  little  one." 

204 


A   BABY   NKENGO    IS   BORN 

The  time  came  when  the  little  nkengo  began  to  get 
some  of  his  first  teeth.  He  also  began  to  talk  nkengo, 
which  he  learned  from  his  parents.  He  was  exceed 
ingly  fond  of  his  mother,  and  loved  to  be  continually 
fondled,  and  as  soon  as  she  stood  still,  he  would  go  to 
her  to  be  caressed.  He  would  stand  between  her 
legs,  or  lie  on  her  breast,  while  Papa  Nkengo  stood 
gazing  at  them  both. 

The  little  one  soon  showed  a  bad  temper,  and  was 
very  self-willed ;  and  if  anything  displeased  him,  he 
would  become  angry,  utter  piercing  cries,  stamp  his 
foot  on  the  ground,  and  refuse  to  be  pacified  until  he 
had  his  own  way.  He  was  a  great  trial  to  his  mamma. 
Sometimes  she  would  let  him  cry  until  he  was  tired. 
At  other  times  she  would  fondle  him.  Then  he 
became  quiet  and  fell  asleep  between  her  legs,  or 
down  by  her  side,  with  his  little  head  resting  on  her 
breast.  Strange  to  say,  all  the  babies  of  the  men  of 
the  woods  have  bad  tempers. 

The  little  nkengo  took  naturally  to  climbing  trees, 
being  born  with  long  arms  and  long  hands,  and  feet 
that  could  be  used  as  hands.  One  day,  as  he  was 
practising  on  a  young  tree,  and  was  hanging,  hold 
ing  on  to  a  branch  by  one  of  his  arms  and  then 
raising  himself  by  the  power  of  his  muscles,  the  big 
nkengo  said  to  his  mate  :  "  Our  little  one  is  making 
great  progress  in  climbing ;  soon  he  will  climb  trees 
and  go  about  among  their  branches  as  well  as  we  do, 
and  then  he  will  be  able  to  get  his  living  without  help." 

The  little  nkengo  grew  up  fast,  but  his  jaws  were 

205 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

not  strong  enough,  nor  his  mouth  big  enough,  to  en 
able  him  to  crush  the  hard  koola  nuts.  So  when  they 
came  to  a  koola-nut  tree,  under  which  the  nuts  had 
fallen,  his  parents  would  break  them  and  pass  them 
to  him  afterward,  to  his  great  delight.  Every  time 
he  came  across  any  koola  nuts,  he  would  try  to  crack 
them,  but  he  could  not,  and  this  would  make  him 
very  angry.  He  wanted  to  become  a  full-grown, 
powerful  nkengo  at  once. 

He  now  ascended  many  trees ;  and  as  the  extremity 
of  the  branches  was  too  slender  for  his  weight,  he 
would,  nkengo  fashion,  extend  his  long  arm  and  pluck 
the  fruits.  Sometimes  when  he  felt  lazy  —  and  the 
men  of  the  woods  often  feel  so  —  he  would  seize  with 
his  feet  a  branch  full  of  fruit  under  him,  and  bring  it 
up  and  pluck  his  food  from  it. 

One  afternoon,  as  the  three  were  wandering  in  the 
forest,  they  came  upon  a  suspicious-looking  thing. 
The  old  nkengos  looked  at  it  with  much  distrust.  It 
was  a  trap  made  by  human  beings  to  catch  monkeys 
with,  and  near  it  was  some  fine  big  juicy  fruit  that 
they  had  put  there  to  tempt  the  monkeys. 

The  old  nkengo  inspected  it  carefully  and  said  to 
his  mate,  "  I  scent  here  the  human  beings."  He  had 
hardly  uttered  these  words  when  he  saw  their  foot 
prints.  Then  he  gave  a  grin,  and  added,  "  The 
human  beings  can  make  traps  to  catch  the  monkeys, 
njokoos,  and  other  animals,  but  they  never  can  suc 
ceed  in  trapping  us  nkengos.  We  know  their  tricks 
and  snares ;  we  are  too  knowing  for  them." 

206 


A    BABY   NKENGO    IS    BORN 

They  kept  a  sharp  lookout,  and  told  the  young 
nkengo  not  to  go  near  the  trap,  for  he  was  not  old 
enough  yet  to  know  all  the  wicked  ways  of  the  human 
beings ;  and  they  talked  to  him,  and  warned  him  of 
the  danger  of  such  traps,  and  told  him  to  look  at  it 
carefully,  so  that  he  would  know  one  the  next  time  if 
he  should  encounter  it. 

Rainy  and  dry  seasons  passed  ;  the  young  nkengo 
grew  larger  and  larger,  and  his  first  teeth  began  to 
drop  out  and  be  replaced  by  others.  When  the  old 
nkengos  saw  this,  they  said,  "  Our  offspring  is  getting 
on  finely  ;  soon  he  will  have  all  his  teeth,  his  jaws  will 
then  be  stronger,  he  will  be  a  fine  strapping  nkengo." 

One  day  they  came  across  a  koola  tree,  beneath 
which  many  nuts  were  scattered  over  the  ground. 
The  young  nkengo  at  last  broke  one  with  his  teeth. 
Then  he  gave  a  big  shout  of  joy.  The  old  nkengos 
were  delighted  when  they  saw  this,  and  said,  "  He  is 
now  able  to  take  care  of  himself." 

Time  passed;  the  three  nkengos  kept  the  even  tenor 
of  their  way,  and  led  the  life  which  nkengos  lead. 
After  remaining  ten  or  fifteen  days  in  a  place,  the  food 
was  eaten  up  for  some  distance  around,  and  they  moved 
away  and  built  new  shelters.  One  day  the  young 
nkengo,  who  had  many  times  watched  his  parents 
make  their  shelter,  made  one  for  himself,  to  their  great 
joy.  Then  they  said  to  each  other,  cc  Soon  he  will 
leave  us  and  go  into  the  forest  by  himself." 

Some  days  afterward  the  young  nkengo  said  to  the 
old  folks,  "  I  am  going  to  leave  you  and  act  as  you 

207 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

did  yourselves  once."  The  following  day  he  left 
them,  and  wandered  all  alone  in  the  forest  and  built 
his  own  bower. 

But  he  felt  lonely,  for  he  was  without  a  mate;  he 
bemoaned  his  fate.  Once  in  a  while  he  would  call 
out,  "  Whoe  !  whoe !  "  but  there  was  no  response, 
for  he  was  the  only  nkengo  in  that  part  of  the  forest. 

He  continued  his  solitary  ramble,  till  he  reached  a 
beautiful  clear  stream,  the  water  of  which  was  as 
smooth  as  glass.  Going  to  the  bank,  he  saw  himself 
reflected  in  the  water,  but  did  not  know  that  what  he 
saw  was  only  his  image.  At  this  sight  he  was  de 
lighted  and  said,  "  At  last  I  have  found  a  companion 
that  will  live  with  me,"  looking  intently  at  what  he 
believed  was  another  nkengo. 

Then  he  stood  up  and  saw  the  shadow  do  the  same. 
He  thought  it  was  rising  to  come  to  him  and  was 
happy  at  the  sight.  Then  he  opened  his  mouth  and 
said,  "  Whoe  !  whoe  !  "  and  he  saw  the  image  open  its 
mouth.  He  became  very  eager  and  jumped  up  and 
down,  and  saw  the  image  in  the  water  do  likewise. 
Then  he  said,  "  Nkengo  dear,  how  happy  I  am  to 
meet  you  !  "  And  the  form  in  the  water  made  the 
same  motions. 

The  nkengo  was  so  glad  to  think  that  his  lonely 
days  had  come  to  an  end  that  he  became  much  excited, 
and  as  he  moved,  the  image  moved  also.  When  he 
shook  his  body,  the  reflection  did  the  same,  and  it 
repeated  whatever  he  did.  Every  time  he  opened  his 
mouth  to  speak,  or  moved  his  arms,  the  supposed 

208 


A    BABY    NKENGO    IS   BORN 

nkengo  in  the  water  did  likewise.  He  could  see  the 
face  plainly,  the  wrinkles,  the  eyes,  the  flat  nose,  the 
thin  lips,  the  big  ears,  —  in  a  word,  the  whole  body  ; 
but  he  never  thought  it  was  his  own  image. 

He  extended  his  arms  toward  the  shape,  and  the 
shape  did  likewise ;  he  advanced  to  the  very  brink  of 
the  stream,  and  the  image  did  the  same.  Then  he 
thought,  "The  nkengo  is  coming  toward  me,"  and 
moved  his  arm  forward  to  caress  his  mate  ;  but  instead 
his  hand  touched  the  water  and  the  ripples  made  by 
it  hid  the  image  for  a  while,  and  he  thought  his  mate 
had  disappeared.  He  did  not  know  what  to  make  of 
this.  Then  he  yelled,  his  hair  became  erect  on  his 
body,  and  the  water  having  become  quiet  again,  he 
saw  the  image  also  yelling  with  its  hair  erect.  That 
angered  him  and  he  said  to  himself,  "  This  is  a  fighting 
nkengo,  and  cannot  be  my  mate.  We  must  fight." 
Then  he  made  another  dash  to  seize  his  antagonist, 
and  this  time  he  dipped  his  arms  deep  into  the  water. 
At  last  he  realized  that  the  nkengo  was  his  own  image, 
and  he  went  away  much  chapfallen,  and  resumed  his 
wandering  in  search  of  a  mate.  Every  day  he  called 
aloud  continually,  and  one  day  he  heard  a  response. 
He  went  toward  the  voice,  and  there  saw  a  beautiful 
young  nkengo,  and  said  to  her,  "Will  you  be  my 
mate  ?  "  She  replied,  "  Yes,'*  and  they  lived  happily, 
as  did  their  old  parents,  and  led  the  same  kind  of  a 
life  in  their  turn. 


209 


CHAPTER   XXXIII 

THE    NGANDOS,    OR    CROCODILES 

A  TROOP  of  monkeys  were  looking  down  one 
day  from  the  top  of  a  tree  at  a  lagoon  studded 
with  mud  banks,  and  saw  a  large  number  of  ngandos 
basking  in  the  sun.  They  laughed  at  them,  and  said: 
"  Ngandos  are  big  and  ugly ;  but  they  cannot  climb 
trees,  and  come  and  gobble  us  into  their  big,  ugly 
mouths.  Strange  it  is  that  their  enormous  mouths 
are  only  good  for  eating ;  but  this  must  be  so,  for 
we  never  hear  them  talk."  The  crocodiles  were  very 
numerous,  and  could  hardly  be  distinguished  from  the 
mud  upon  which  they  lay.  Many  of  them  were 
more  than  twenty  feet  in  length. 

The  monkeys  were  making  all  kinds  of  disparaging 
remarks  about  the  crocodiles,  who  could  hear  their 
chatter,  but  did  not  move  or  wink.  "  No  creature/' 
said  one  of  the  monkeys,  "  looks  as  stupid  and  lazy 
as  the  ngandos.  Look  at  them  ! "  and  all  the  mon 
keys  laughed.  The  crocodiles  did  not  understand 
the  language  of  the  monkeys,  and  even  if  they  had 
been  able  to,  they  could  not  have  gone  to  fight  them, 
as  they  could  not  climb  trees  and  jump  from  one  limb 
to  another.  Had  they  even  thought  of  trying,  the 
monkeys  would  have  laughed  at  them  still  more. 

210 


THE   NGANDOS,   OR   CROCODILES 

Every  animal  has  a  nature  to  suit  his  mode  of  life, 
and  that  of  the  crocodiles  is  not  to  climb  trees  to  get 
food,  but  to  wait  for  prey,  hidden  in  the  water  or  in 
the  rushes.  They  are  most  cunning  creatures. 

Once  in  a  while  a  huge  ngando  would  open  his 
long,  pointed  mouth,  showing  his  fierce-looking  jaws 
armed  with  sharp  teeth,  enough  to  make  one  shudder 
at  the  sight.  "  When  I  seize  my  prey,  and  shut  my 
mouth  and  hold  it  there,"  said  one  of  them,  "  my 


long  teeth  sink  into  its  flesh,  and  it  cannot  escape  ; 
besides,  I  drag  it  into  the  water,  where  it  would 
drown  anyhow.  What  a  good  thing  it  is  that  we 
ngandos  have  such  powerful  jaws,  and  can  move  so 
swiftly  in  the  water!  Our  tails  propel  and  steer  us 
wherever  we  want  to  go,  and  our  sharp-pointed  heads 
allow  us  to  cleave  the  water  swiftly.  We  can  also  see 
well." 

Once  in  a  while  a  crocodile's  head  would  appear 
suddenly  on  the  surface  of  the  water,  and  lie  so  still 
that  it  might  have  been  taken  for  a  big  piece  of  wood 

211 


THE  WORLD    OF    THE    GREAT  FOREST 

or  a  dead  tree  floating ;  while  other  heads  were  seen 
moving  in  the  direction  of  the  mud  banks,  leaving  an 
almost  imperceptible  ripple  behind  them  ;  and  when 
near  the  banks  their  huge  dark  bodies  would  gradu 
ally  appear  out  of  the  water  as  they  climbed  on  the 
mud.  There  they  would  lie  perfectly  motionless  by 
the  side  of  the  others.  They  were  then  so  quiet  that 
they  appeared  as  if  they  were  dead.  There  were 
many  crocodiles  that  were  out  of  sight ;  these  were 
hidden  among  the  tall  reeds  growing  on  the  muddy 
shores  of  the  lagoon,  and  were  resting  among 
them. 

All  the  denizens  of  the  forest  wondered  how 
ngandos  could  understand  one  another,  for  they  never 
had  heard  them  speak  or  even  make  a  noise.  Yet 
the  crocodiles  understand  one  another  perfectly,  by 
signs  made  with  their  eyes,  and  in  peculiar  silent  ways 
unknown  to  anybody  but  to  themselves.  They  are 
not  as  stupid  as  they  are  thought  to  be,  otherwise 
they  would  not  be  able  to  get  their  living. 

The  ngandos  often  said  to  one  another,  "  We  are 
safe  in  our  lagoons,  for  no  animal  of  the  forest  dares 
to  come  and  attack  us.  Our  enemies  are  the  human 
beings ;  but  if  we  see  one  walking  on  the  shores  of 
our  lagoon,  we  dart  at  him  and  seize  him  in  our  pow 
erful  jaws,  taking  him  in  the  water  to  devour  him." 

As  the  days  advanced,  and  the  sun  became  warm, 
almost  all  the  crocodiles  went  in  among  the  reeds,  and 
all  the  mud  banks  became  deserted,  and  the  animals 
of  the  forest  did  not  know  what  had  become  of  them. 


212 


THE    NGANDOS,    OR    CROCODILES 

When  the  sun  was  half  down  to  the  horizon  from 
noon-tide,  the  crocodiles  left  their  hiding-places  to  try 
to  get  their  afternoon  meal.  The  water  then  seemed 
to  be  covered  with  crocodiles*  heads.  They  were  seen 
everywhere.  They  watched  the  shores  with  their 
piercing  eyes.  They  knew  that  it  was  the  time  when 
many  animals  of  the  forest  came  to  drink.  One 
ngando  said  to  his  mate :  "  You  and  I  will  go 
yonder  and  watch  that  opening  among  the  reeds, 
where  we  can  see  the  shore,  for  it  is  a  good  place  for 
watching.  Prey  may  come  there  to  drink,  or  to  see 
if  there  is  some  good  fording  place  to  reach  the  other 
bank." 

The  two  crocodiles  swam  slowly  and  noiselessly 
toward  the  bank  of  the  river.  They  seemed  to  have 
no  apparent  object.  They  did  not  wish  to  draw 
attention  to  themselves ;  but,  after  a  while,  it  hap 
pened  that  all  the  crocodiles  had  chosen  their  watch- 
ing-places.  The  two  already  spoken  of  took  each  a 
good  position  to  watch  for  prey,  and  were  quite  a  dis 
tance  from  each  other,  for  crocodiles  seek  for  prey 
alone.  Soon  the  big  one  saw  a  kambi  coming  toward 
the  water,  and  swam  toward  him.  His  head  was  the 
only  part  of  his  body  that  was  visible.  Only  the  acut- 
est  eye  could  have  noticed  the  ripple  he  left  behind. 
Then  he  stopped  and  waited,  sinking  his  flat  head 
deeper  into  the  water,  up  to  his  very  eyes. 

Just  at  that  moment  a  nshiego  (chimpanzee)  from 
a  tree  was  looking  at  the  lagoon  and  watching  all  the 
moving  heads  going  hither  and  thither.  Suddenly 

213 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

he  gave  a  yell  and  frightened  the  kambi,  which  ran 
off.  The  crocodile  was  much  disappointed. 

Soon  after  this  appeared  on  the  shore  a  drove  of 
ngoas.  At  their  head  was  a  fierce-looking  boar,  the 
chief  of  the  drove,  with  formidable  tusks.  They  were 
heading  for  the  water.  As  soon  as  the  crocodile  saw 
them,  he  swam  nearer  the  shore,  and  once  in  a  while 
his  head  would  disappear  under  the  water,  and  when 
it  reappeared,  it  was  nearer  to  the  ngoas  than  before. 
Once  the  ngoas  became  suspicious  and  glanced  in  his 
direction.  When  he  saw  this,  he  said  :  "  I  must  hide 
under  water  to  allay  the  fear  of  the  ngoas,"  and  then 
disappeared  under  the  water  for  a  while.  But  every 
time  his  head  reappeared,  it  was  nearer  to  the  bank 
than  before.  His  eyes  and  the  top  of  his  head  above 
them  was  all  that  could  be  seen  floating.  He  swam 
slowly  toward  the  ngoas. 

These  in  the  mean  time  were  in  the  mud  and  enjoy 
ing  themselves,  and  did  not  notice  the  crocodile.  The 
chief  of  the  ngoas  stood  ahead  of  his  drove,  digging 
up  the  mud  with  his  nose.  The  crocodile  made  for 
him  as  quick  as  an  arrow ;  and,  before  the  ngoa  had 
time  to  become  aware  of  his  danger,  he  was  in  the 
powerful  jaws  of  his  enemy.  The  poor  ngoa  gave 
one  shriek  of  pain.  All  the  others  fled  in  the  utmost 
terror,  each  uttering  cries  of  fear,  and  soon  disappeared 
in  the  great  forest.  In  the  mean  time,  their  poor  chief 
was  making  a  meal  for  the  crocodile. 

In  their  flight  the  ngoas  met  another  drove  of  their 
kind,  and  shrieked  to  them  in  the  language  of  the 

214 


u  All  the  others  fled  in  terror  and  disappeared  in 
the  Great  Forest" 


THE   NGANDOS,    OR   CROCODILES 

ngoas :  "  Don't  go  to  the  lagoon,  for  our  chief  has 
just  been  eaten  up  by  a  ngando  ! "  Then  they  put 
themselves  under  the  other  chief,  and  rambled  in  the 
forest  in  search  of  food,  taking  good  care  never  to  go 
near  the  lagoon. 


215 


CHAPTER  XXXIV 

THE  OGATA,  OR  BURROW  CROCODILE 

A  BIG  ogata,  over  seven  feet  long,  was  looking 
one  day  from  the  dark  opening  of  his  burrow 
built  on  a  declivity  of  a  hill  by  a  large  river,  watching 
for  prey.  The  creature  was  ugly  enough,  and  looked 
somewhat  like  his  cousin  the  crocodile,  and  he  is  just 
as  bad  if  not  worse.  The  ogata  is  a  night  animal. 

From  his  dark  hole,  his  hungry  eyes  peered 
through  the  intense  darkness ;  but  no  prey  was  in 
sight.  "  I  have  had  a  hard  life  lately,"  he  said ; 
"  I  have  been  hungry,  for  prey  is  scarce,  and  all  the 
animals  of  the  forest  are  now  afraid  of  this  place,  for 
I  have  devoured  many,  and  those  who  have  escaped 
from  my  powerful  jaws  have  told  the  others  to  beware 
of  this  neighborhood." 

Then  he  opened  his  big  mouth,  and  thought  of 
the  many  animals  that  had  been  held  last  in  his 
jaws,  and  of  his  many  delicious  meals,  and  added  : 
"  The  good  meals  of  the  past  do  not  help  the  future ; 
indeed,  when  we  are  hungry,  the  recollection  of  them 
only  serves  to  give  us  a  greater  appetite.  Here  I 
starve  now,  and  I  must  move  away  to  some  other 
quarters;  otherwise  I  shall  die  of  hunger." 

216 


THE  OGATA,  OR  BURROW  CROCODILE 

His  big  body  gradually  issued  from  his  hole,  and, 
through  the  darkness,  which  to  him  was  like  sunshine, 
he  looked  up  and  down  the  river,  for  he  had  not  made 
up  his  mind  yet  which  way  to  go  and  explore.  After 
much  thought,  he  decided  to  go  up-stream.  He 
walked  or  swam  along  the  wooded  shores  of  the  river, 
and  after  a  while  came  to  the  declivity  of  another 
hill  by  the  water,  where  he  stopped,  and  looking 
around  said  :  "  Here  is  a  good  place  for  me  to  make 
my  burrow.  The  rain  when  it  runs  down  will  not  fill 
my  home.  Surely  animals  will  come  here  to  drink 
or  to  cross  the  river."  Whereupon  he  chuckled  as 
the  ogata  does  at  the  prospect  of  having  a  good 
meal. 

He  immediately  set  at  work,  and  with  his  fore- 
claws  dug  a  round  hole,  just  big  enough  for  him  to 
go  through.  After  a  while  only  half  of  his  body  was 
to  be  seen.  The  earth  which  he  excavated  was 
thrown  out  by  his  forefeet,  armed  with  heavy  claws, 
and  heaped  up  behind  him.  It  was  hard  work,  for 
he  had  met  with  roots  of  trees,  and  these  had  to  be 
cut  through  and  taken  out  of  the  way.  If  he  had  been 
a  human  being,  he  would  have  been  worn  out.  His 
big  claws  did  splendid  work.  After  a  while  only  his 
tail  was  to  be  seen,  his  hind-legs  being  hidden  in  the 
burrow  and  helping  to  throw  out  the  dirt  the  forelegs 
dug.  The  burrow  went  deep  into  the  declivity  of  the 
hill,  and  when  finished  had  two  entrances,  —  one  to  go 
in,  the  other  to  go  out. 

It  was  nearly  daylight  when  he  had  finished  his 

217 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

burrow.  So  he  went  in  to  spend  the  day,  and  had 
a  good  sleep.  When  night  came,  he  went  to  the 
other  opening  to  watch  for  prey.  His  ugly  head  and 
wicked,  treacherous  eyes  were  listening  and  watching ; 
but  that  night  no  animal  came  to  the  river  to  drink. 
He  felt  terribly  hungry  and  said  to  himself:  "  Strange 
it  is  if  I  have  built  my  burrow  in  a  place  where  no 
animal  comes  to  drink.  It  is  not  often  that  I  am 
mistaken  in  my  selection  of  a  home." 

As  he  watched  he  heard  a  rippling  on  the  water, 
and,  looking  in  the  direction  from  which  the  sound 
came,  saw  up  the  river  a  gazelle  swimming  toward  the 
other  shore,  which  she  had  nearly  reached.  He  imme 
diately  left  his  burrow,  and  in  an  instant  was  swim 
ming,  against  the  current,  as  fast  as  he  could  toward 
the  beautiful  creature,  saying  to  himself,  "Now  I 
shall  soon  have  a  meal.  It  is  about  time,  for  I  am 
starving." 

He  was  near  his  prey  in  an  incredibly  short  time, 
but  if  she  succeeded  in  landing,  she  would  escape  him 
by  running  at  once  into  the  forest,  and  his  meal,  upon 
which  he  was  counting  so  much,  would  vanish. 

The  poor  gazelle  found  that  the  fierce  ogata  was 
after  her ;  she  swam  as  fast  as  she  could,  and  landed, 
with  her  enemy  within  a  few  feet  of  her.  In  another 
moment  his  jaws  would  have  closed  upon  her.  But 
she  bounded  into  the  forest,  and  soon  was  out  of  sight. 

The  ogata  was  furious,  and  said :  "  You  miserable 
little  gazelle,  you  have  escaped  me !  "  Then  he 
grinned  as  the  Ogatas  do  ;  but  it  was  a  grin  of  dis- 

218 


THE  OGATA,  OR  BURROW  CROCODILE 

appointment  and  hate.  Reluctantly  he  recrossed 
the  river,  and  went  to  his  burrow  to  watch  again  for 
prey. 

The  day  of  retribution  was  coming  for  the  ogata  ; 
his  life  of  slaughter  was  soon  to  come  to  an  end. 
No  more  creatures  were  to  be  eaten  by  him.  It 
happened  the  next  day  that  some  human  beings,  as 
they  were  paddling  in  their  canoe  close  to  the  shore, 
saw  the  burrow  the  ogata  had  made.  They  landed, 
and  exhibited  great  glee  when  they  saw  the  fresh  trail 
of  the  ogata.  They  knew  it  was  not  an  old  burrow, 
and  that  the  ugly  creature  was  inside  asleep. 

So  they  went  back  of  the  two  openings,  collected 
wood,  closed  the  entrances,  and  inside  the  exit,  a 
little  distance  from  its  mouth,  set  a  snare  to  catch 
him.  When  all  was  ready,  they  lighted  a  fire  at  one 
entrance,  and  pushed  the  burning  wood  inside.  The 
smoke  was  so  dense,  and  the  fire  so  bright,  that  the 
ogata  was  frightened  and  ran  out  toward  the  exit. 
There  he  was  caught  in  the  meshes  made  for  him,  and 
was  killed. 


219 


CHAPTER   XXXV 

THE    KAMBIS,    OR    ANTELOPES,    THE    NCHERIS,    OR 
GAZELLES,    AND    THE    BONGO 

A  HERD  of  beautiful  kambis  with  long  spiral 
horns  were  one  day  running  through  the  forest 
for  their  lives,  and  never  stopped  until  they  had  gone 
many  miles,  and  thought  themselves  out  of  danger. 
They  were  panting  for  breath,  for  they  had  run  a  long 
way  and  were  much  frightened. 

When  they  had  rested,  they  exclaimed:  "  It  is  a 
wonder  that  we  have  been  able  to  grow  to  our  full 
size.  Just  think  of  the  enemies  we  have  prowling  in 
the  forest,  and  all  the  time  seeking  to  kill  us  !  We 
never  know  if  we  are  safe.  We  have  to  be  all  the 
time  on  the  lookout.  The  wicked  and  blood-thirsty 
njego  is  always  trying  to  take  our  lives.  Think  of 
the  number  of  kambis  the  njegos  kill  every  rainy  and 
dry  season.  Only  a  few  days  ago  one  of  these  horrid 
njegos  sprang  upon  us  and  killed  one  of  our  number. 

"  There  is  the  huge  ombama ;  he  is  just  as  sly  as, 
and  even  more  so  than,  all  our  other  enemies.  He 
coils  round  trees  of  his  color,  so  that  we  cannot  see 
him,  then  darts  upon  us  when  we  pass  near  him  and 
squeezes  us  to  death. 

"The  mboyos  [jackals]  corral  us,  then  precipitate 
themselves  upon  us  and  kill  us.  The  hyenas  are  also 


220 


KAMBIS,   NCHERIS,   AND    THE    BONGO 

our  enemies,  and  are  just  as  bad  as  the  mboyos.  The 
crocodiles  sometimes  catch  us.  We  do  no  harm  to 
any  of  these  wicked  creatures.  We  are  not  blood 
thirsty.  We  live  on  the  leaves  of  trees.  We  kill  none 
of  their  prey.  It  is  fortunate  that  we  are  fleet-footed." 

Then  a  wise  old  kambi  said :  "  Our  greatest  enemies 
are  the  human  beings.  They  kill  more  of  us  than  all 
the  njegos,  ombamas,  crocodiles,  hyenas,  and  jackals 
put  together.  These  human  beings  are  full  of  evil 
devices  and  tricks,  and  have  mboua  [dogs]  to  hunt  us. 
They  spread  long  lines  of  nets  in  the  forest  to  catch 
us,  drive  us  within  them,  and  then  come  and  kill  us." 

"  Yes/*  assented  all  the  kambis.  "  These  human 
beings  are  indeed  our  worst  enemies,  though  we  do 
not  do  them  any  harm  whatever ;  we  do  not  eat  their 
plantains  or  their  other  food." 

As  they  had  done  speaking,  and  were  beginning  to 
nip  at  the  leaves,  there  came  up  at  full  speed  a  herd 
of  graceful  little  ncheris  with  heads  ornamented  with 
short,  pointed  little  horns,  and  stopped. 

"  Good-morning,  kambis,"  said  the  little  ncheris  to 
the  big  kambis,  who  were  giants  compared  to  them. 

"  Good-morning,  dear  little  ncheris,"  replied  the 
big  kambis. 

"  We  have  had  a  great  escape,"  said  the  ncheris. 
"  We  did  not  fall  into  the  nets  the  human  beings  had 
laid  to  ensnare  us  with  ;  but  we  saw  many  of  your 
kind  and  many  of  ours  caught  by  those  horrid  nets 
and  dogs,  as  we  passed  by ;  and  other  beasts  also,  — • 
some  of  them  our  enemies." 


221 


THE   WORLD   OF  THE    GREAT    FOREST 

"  Glad  to  hear  it.  That  is  good  news  to  us,  for 
there  will  be  fewer  of  these  horrid  creatures  after  us." 

The  gazelles  also  wondered  how  they  could  have 
grown  to  their  present  size  without  being  killed  and 
devoured,  as  they  had  more  enemies  than  the  kambis, 
for  they  were  smaller,  and  some  of  the  night  prowlers 
that  did  not  attack  the  big  kambis  attacked  them. 

"  We  are  more  unfortunate  than  you  are,  big  kambis/' 
said  they,  "  on  account  of  our  small  size.  Only  the 
biggest  of  the  omembas  can  take  your  lives." 

"It  is  fortunate,"  replied  the  big  kambis,  "  that  the 
ichneumon  and  some  of  the  night  prowlers  kill  these 
horrid  omembas  before  they  are  full  grown." 

"  Yes,"  answered  the  little  ncheris,  "  for  if  these 
horrid  snakes  were  not  destroyed  by  them  more  of  us 
would  be  killed  every  day." 

Then  in  a  chorus  all  shouted :  "  How  we  hate  and 
fear  the  omembas  !  How  we  wish  they  and  the 
dreadful  njegos  had  more  enemies,  and  that  the  ich 
neumons  were  more  numerous  !  " 

As  the  gazelles  and  the  antelopes  were  nipping  at 
the  leaves,  there  appeared  among  them  a  bongo,  the 
rarest  and  most  beautiful  antelope  of  the  forest.  They 
all  looked  at  the  new-comer  with  amazement,  and 
riveted  their  big  black  eyes  upon  him. 

Their  astonishment  was  great,  for  they  never  had 
seen  one  like  him  before.  No  wonder,  for  there 
were  so  few  bongos.  His  graceful  shape  and  long 
spiral  horns  told  them  he  was  an  antelope. 

"  How  beautiful  you  are  !  "  cried  all  the  kambis  and 

222 


KAMBIS,    NCHERIS,   AND   THE    BONGO 

ncheris  at  once.  "  You  are  the  loveliest  kambi  we  have 
ever  seen.  The  bright  yellow  orange  color  of  your 
skin,  and  the  many  milk-white  stripes  on  your  sides  are 
a  delight  to  look  at !  " 


"  My  beauty  is  my  curse,  dear  kambis  and  ncheris," 
replied  the  bongo  ;  "  my  yellow  color  and  my  white 
stripes  are  my  bane,  for  my  enemies,  which  are  also 
yours,  can  spy  me  farther  and  quicker  than  they  do 
you." 

The  kambis  and  the  ncheris  could  not  take  their 
eyes  away  from  the  bongo.  They  admired  him  more 
and  more,  and  proclaimed  him  the  most  charming 
creature  of  the  forest. 


223 


CHAPTER  XXXVI 

THE    OSHINGI,    OR    CIVET 

AN  oshingi  with  its  beautiful,  spotted,  leopard-like 
skin,  and  pretty,  long-ringed  tail,  was  cosily 
sleeping  one  day  in  the  deep  and  dark  hollow  of  a  tree. 
When  the  day  had  passed  away,  and  night  had  come, 
he  grew  restless  in  his  sleep ;  for  the  oshingi  belongs 
to  the  night  prowlers.  At  last  he  opened  his  eyes, 
stretched  himself,  and  yawned  several  times. 

A  great  storm  was  raging;  the  rain  was  falling 
heavily,  and  claps  of  thunder  followed  in  quick  suc 
cession.  It  was  a  fearful  night.  As  the  oshingi  lis 
tened,  he  said  to  himself,  "What  a  nice  home  I 
have !  not  a  drop  of  rain  comes  in,  and  the  wind 
cannot  penetrate/'  Then,  with  a  long  sigh,  he  added, 
"  But  a  comfortable  home  does  not  give  me  a  meal ; 
and  a  nice  home,  without  food,  is  a  poor  one.  I 
have  been  hungry  these  last  few  days,  and  have  sev 
eral  times  returned  to  my  lair  with  an  empty  stomach, 
or  had  only  a  scanty  meal.  I  have  lived  too  long 
in  this  neighborhood,  and  destroyed  so  many  lives 
that  I  have  frightened  away  all  the  prey.  I  ought 
to  have  departed  before  this ;  but  I  am  loath  to  give 
up  this  comfortable  home,  one  of  the  best  that  I  have 
ever  had." 

224 


THE   OSHINGI,   OR   CIVET 

No  wonder  the  oshingi  loved  his  lair.  The  hollow 
was  very  deep,  cosey  and  soft  at  the  bottom,  and  no 
animals  would  ever  have  thought  that  any  one  lived 
there,  for  the  hollow  was  a  few  feet  above  the  ground. 
Though  his  abode  was  pitch-dark,  his  glittering  eyes 
could  see  everything  there,  through  the  intense  dark 
ness,  even  the  smallest  grain  of  sand,  just  as  if  his 
place  had  been  lighted  by  electric  lights. 

"  It  is  too  early  yet  to  go  out  after  prey,"  resumed 
the  oshingi,  "  for  the  birds  are  not  yet  in  their  heavy 
sleep.  They  awaken  easily,  and  scent  danger  quickly. 
They  are  suspicious,  for  they  fear  us,  and  other  night 
prowlers  who  feed  upon  them.  I  must  wait  a  while 
though  I  am  so  hungry.  He  who  is  patient  and 
waits,  gets  the  prey." 

Reflecting  thus,  the  oshingi  coiled  himself  up  and 
took  another  snooze  ;  but  now  his  heavy  sleep  was 
over,  and  he  awoke  now  and  then.  At  last  about  mid 
night  he  rose,  saying  to  himself:  "  Half  the  night  is 
over.  Every  day  creature,  animal  and  bird,  is  in  its 
heaviest  sleep,  and  will  not  scent  me." 

With  the  help  of  his  cat-like  claws,  he  ascended  his 
hollow,  and  when  he  came  to  the  top  put  his  head 
out,  looked  around,  and  listened.  The  storm  was 
over,  so  he  could  hear  well. 

The  oshingi  is  one  of  the  most  cautious  and  sly  of 
the  night  prowlers.  He  is  not  of  a  very  large  size, 
with  a  body  of  about  two  feet  long  and  a  tail  some 
what  longer,  and  cannot  fight  big  animals.  His  elon 
gated  head  possesses  most  treacherous  eyes.  He 
15  225 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE  GREAT   FOREST 

sniffed  the  air,  and  thought  there  was  no  danger.  So 
he  came  out,  and  descended  the  trunk  of  the  tree 
backward,  his  claws  firmly  imbedded  in  the  bark  as  a 
support  to  prevent  him  from  tumbling  down. 

When  he  had  reached  the  ground,  he  stopped,  and 
thought  a  while.  He  wondered  in  what  part  of  the 
forest  it  was  most  likely  that  game  could  be  found. 
He  sniffed  the  air,  so  as  to  go  against  it,  in  order  that 
the  animals  or  birds  upon  which  he  preyed  could  not 
scent  him,  for  the  oshingi  have  a  strong  odor. 

Having  discovered  in  which  direction  to  go,  he 
started  out  on  his  journey,  saying :  "  I  hope  I  shall 
find  to-night  some  partridge  or  pheasant,  or  some  of 
the  fat  green  pigeons  that  perch  on  the  lower  trees. 
There  are  so  many  together  that  if  I  do  I  shall  have 
a  glorious  feast.  If  I  am  unlucky  then,  I  will  go 
toward  a  river  I  know,  and  prowl  along  the  shore,  and 
seek  for  some  wild  duck  resting  or  feeding  on  its 
banks,  or  for  some  other  water  bird."  He  went 
noiselessly  through  the  jungle,  over  the  leaves  and 
dead  branches.  Not  one  of  his  steps  could  be  heard, 
for  they  were  as  light  as  those  of  the  grasshopper,  and 
did  not  make  any  more  noise  than  a  butterfly  alight 
ing  on  a  flower  or  a  leaf.  This  silent  walking  is  the 
greatest  gift  possessed  by  the  oshingis ;  no  animal  has 
a  lighter  step  in  the  forest. 

But,  in  spite  of  all  his  gifts,  of  light  step,  of  keen 
scent,  and  of  splendid  eyesight,  he  saw  no  game  that 
night,  and  returned  to  his  lair  with  an  empty  stomach. 
It  was  four  o'clock  in  the  morning,  about  the  usual 

226 


THE   OSHINGI,   OR   CIVET 

time  the  night  prowlers  return  to  their  homes.  Before 
he  went  to  sleep,  he  said :  "  I  must  change  my  quar 
ters.  I  shall  not  come  back  here  again  to  spend  the 


day,  for  I  shall  surely  die  of  starvation  in  this  neigh 
borhood.  How  hard  I  have  to  work  for  my  living !  " 
The  following  night,  the  oshingi  left  his  home 
earlier  than  usual,  for  not  only  had  he  to  change  his 
abode,  but  also  to  find  prey.  After  a  long  tramp,  he 

227 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT    FOREST 

scented  a  black  pheasant,  and  his  eyes  glittered  with  joy 
at  the  prospect  of  a  good  meal.  When  he  came  near, 
he  saw  that  the  black  pheasant  was  seated  on  her  nest ; 
and  in  an  instant  he  pounced  upon  the  poor  bird,  cut 
its  jugular  vein,  and  drank  its  blood,  devouring  the 
body  afterward.  Then  he  continued  his  journey. 
"  Now,"  he  said,  "  I  have  had  a  meal,  and  can  look 
out  for  a  new  home. " 

Shortly  afterward,  looking  carefully  at  the  trees  he 
passed  by,  he  heard  a  noise  of  something  coming  to 
ward  him,  and  he  hid  under  the  root  of  a  big  tree. 
The  noise  was  made  by  kambis  that  were  travelling. 
After  the  kambis  had  passed,  the  oshingi  came  out 
of  his  hiding-place,  and  started  again. 

The  night  was  far  advanced,  and  he  had  to  hurry 
to  find  a  place  to  sleep  in.  At  last  he  found 
one,  though  it  was  not  very  comfortable,  not  being 
dark  enough  in  daytime.  As  he  lay  down  to  sleep, 
he  twisted  his  long  tail  over  his  eyes  to  hide  the  dim 
light  when  the  day  should  come.  Just  as  he  was 
dropping  off  to  sleep,  he  heard  the  cry  of  partridges 
calling  to  each  other,  and  said  to  himself,  for  the 
oshingi  know  by  the  different  noises  the  birds  make 
what  species  they  belong  to,  "To-morrow  night  I 
will  hunt  up  those  partridges." 

The  oshingi  did  not  sleep  well,  for  the  place  was 
not  very  dark,  and  he  could  not  help  remembering 
the  cosey  home  he  had  abandoned.  When  it  was 
night  he  left  his  hiding-place,  and  went  after  the  par 
tridges  he  had  heard  in  the  early  morning ;  but  they 

228 


THE   OSHINGI,   OR   CIVET 

had  gone  far  away,  and  he  could  not  get  his  supper, 
and  felt  very  disappointed.  Giving  up  the  chase  of 
the  partridges,  he  looked  for  a  big  old  tree  with  a 
hollow,  and  ascended  several  in  the  hope  of  finding 
good  lodgings,  but  saw  none. 

Continuing  his  search,  he  heard  a  slight  noise. 
He  stopped,  and  saw  a  porcupine  near  by.  But  he 
said :  "  No  matter  how  hungry  I  am,  I  will  not 
attack  you,  porcupine.  I  am  afraid  of  your  long  and 
hard  quills."  And  both  animals  went  their  way. 

Soon  after  the  oshingi  heard  a  great  noise  and  ran 
up  a  tree  to  hide.  A  large  herd  of  ngoas  thereupon 
appeared,  grunting  terribly  ;  for  they  had  found  many 
nuts  on  the  ground,  and  their  grunts  were  grunts  of 
gladness.  The  chief  of  the  herd  scented  the  oshingi, 
and  made  for  the  tree  in  which  he  was  hidden.  But 
the  oshingi  waited  for  the  boars  to  move  on,  and  when 
they  had  done  so,  he  came  down  the  tree,  crying : 
"  What  a  fright  those  horrid  ngoas  gave  me  ! " 

That  night  the  oshingi  discovered  a  fine,  deep 
hollow,  and  entering  it,  explored  it  with  great  pru 
dence,  saw  that  it  was  all  right,  and  rejoiced  greatly, 
saying  to  himself:  "  I  hope  prey  will  be  plentiful 
round  here,  so  that  I  can  enjoy  this  nice  new  house 
of  mine  for  some  time."  Then  he  looked  at  every 
thing  so  as  to  know  the  surroundings  well. 

From  his  new  home  the  oshingi  started  every 
night  after  prey.  At  first  he  fed  well,  partridges, 
black  pheasants,  and  other  large  birds  being  plentiful. 
He  killed  many  and  drank  their  blood.  At  last  the 

22Q 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE  GREAT  FOREST 

survivors  were  terrified,  and  departed  for  another  part 
of  the  forest. 

Then  once  more  the  oshingi  had  a  hard  time  to 
get  his  meals,  and  days  of  hunger  and  starvation  came 
again.  He  at  first  thought  of  going  back  to  the  lair 
he  had  left,  but  reflected  to  himself:  "  It  has  not  been 
long  enough  yet  since  my  departure  for  the  partridges, 
pheasants,  and  other  birds  to  return  to  that  neighbor 
hood.  I  must  seek  new  quarters." 

After  two  nights'  wandering,  he  reached  the  out 
skirts  of  a  village  of  human  beings,  and,  to  his  great 
joy,  scented  chickens.  "  I  like  to  come  to  the 
habitations  of  human  beings,"  he  chuckled,  "  for  they 
always  have  chickens,  and  when  I  can  get  into  a 
chicken-coop  I  am  happy. " 

But  he  also  scented  dogs,  which  caused  him  to 
add,  "  I  must  beware  of  the  dogs,  for  they  are  my 
enemies.  Oh,  how  I  hate  dogs  ! "  He  took  great 
precautions  as  he  walked  in  the  direction  of  the 
village.  When  near,  he  heard  human  voices  and 
the  barking  of  dogs,  which  frightened  him.  There 
upon  he  ascended  a  tree,  and,  seeing  a  hole  in 
which  to  hide  and  sleep,  he  said :  "  I  am  going 
to  stay  here.  I  have  seen  villages  of  human  beings 
before,  and  when  they  all  go  to  sleep  my  turn 
will  come,  and  I  shall  have  a  great  time  in  the 
chicken-coops.*' 

The  following  night  the  oshingi  left  his  hiding- 
place  to  make  his  raid  upon  the  chicken-coops.  On 
his  way,  he  said  :  "  I  must  be  very  cautious,  for  now 

230 


THE   OSHINGI,   OR   CIVET 

I  am  a  thief,  and  must  keep  out  of  the  way  of  the 
human  beings  and  their  dreadful  dogs." 

When  he  approached  the  village,  his  searching  eyes 
saw  fires  burning  in  the  street,  and  he  heard  the 
human  beings  talk.  Then  he  went  back  to  the 
forest  to  wait,  and  after  a  while  returned  to  spy. 
This  time  everybody  was  asleep ;  there  was  no  more 
noise.  The  dogs  had  gone  inside  the  houses,  or 
were  also  asleep.  It  was  so  quiet  that  only  the  wind 
passing  through  the  branches  of  the  trees  could  be 
heard  by  the  night  prowlers. 

The  oshingi  entered  the  village  slyly,  walking  at 
first  behind  the  houses,  then  in  the  street.  He  came 
to  several  chicken-coops ;  but  there  was  no  way  of 
getting  in,  for  they  were  very  tightly  made,  the  people 
having  had  their  chickens  killed  by  oshingis  before. 
He  walked  several  times  around  each,  and  noticed  a 
dog  asleep  in  the  street.  "  I  must  keep  out  of  the 
way  of  this  ugly  dog,"  he  said.  "  Happily  they  can 
not  see  me  when  it  is  so  dark ;  besides,  they  do  not 
suspect  my  presence,  and  they  cannot  hear  me  walk." 
He  did  not  want  to  run  any  risks,  and  walked  toward 
the  end  of  the  street.  Suddenly  he  stopped,  for  he 
scented  another  chicken-coop.  The  scent  was  very 
strong,  for  the  coop  was  full  of  chickens. 

He  approached  it  and  walked  round  it.  To  his 
joy,  he  found  a  little  opening  through  which  he  could 
push  himself.  As  soon  as  he  had  entered,  he  saw 
quantities  of  chickens  perched  on  sticks,  and  his  eyes 
glared  like  fire  with  hungry  anticipation.  In  an  in- 

231 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE   GREAT  FOREST 

stant  the  chickens  were  aware  of  the  presence  of  one 
of  their  most  inveterate  enemies,  and,  much  frightened, 
flew  from  one  place  to  another,  cackling  very  loud. 

The  oshingi  first  caught  the  big  rooster  by  the 
neck,  cut  its  jugular  vein  and  drank  its  blood,  then 
did  likewise  with  the  other  chickens,  and  did  not  go 
until  they  were  all  dead.  He  had  hardly  time  to  get 
through  the  hole,  when  the  men,  hearing  the  noise 
made  by  the  chickens,  rose  and  called  their  dogs. 
These  dogs  knew  at  once  what  they  were  wanted  for, 
and  hunted  all  round.  The  oshingi  had  just  time 
to  escape  with  his  life. 

The  people  of  the  village  were  very  angry  when 
they  saw  the  havoc  the  oshingi  had  wrought,  and 
said,  "  Let  us  make  traps  to  catch  him."  The  fol 
lowing  day,  they  set  traps  outside  the  village,  and  put 
chickens  in  each  of  them.  But  the  oshingi  did  not 
come  back.  He  knew  too  much. 

The  oshingis  are  very  cunning,  and  it  is  very  seldom 
that  they  return  to  a  village  where  they  have  com 
mitted  depredations.  They  wait  a  long  while  before 
coming  again. 

One  night  the  oshingi  came  to  a  river  bank  and 
spied  on  the  water  a  flock  of  ducks  in  the  midst  of  the 
thick  darkness.  His  eyes  followed  the  ducks  swim 
ming  up  and  down  the  stream  as  the  fancy  took  them. 
They  were  very  shy,  and  once  in  a  while  through  the 
deep  silence  of  the  forest  they  uttered  subdued  quacks, 
which  were  warnings  to  those  of  the  flock  who  were 
approaching  too  near  the  shore  not  to  go  nearer. 

232 


THE    OSHINGI,    OR    CIVET 

Their  leader  constantly  uttered  the  note  of  warning 

which   meant,  cc  Keep  in   the   middle  of  the  stream." 

He  feared  danger,  for   two    or 

three   weeks   before,  one    night 

while    feeding    quietly    on    the 

grass  growing  on  the  low  bank 

of  the    river,    an    oshingi    had 

suddenly    seized    one    of  the 

ducks,  and  the  flock  flew  away 

in  great  fright.     The  ducks  had 

not  forgotten  this  event  and  had 

been  timid  ever  since. 

The  oshingi,  tired  of  waiting, 
became   impatient,  and  said  to 
himself:  "  When  are  those  ducks 
coming  ashore  ?     I  am  hungry, 
and    I    want    a    meal.      Surely 
they  will  land 
soon."      He 
did  not  know 
that  the  ducks 
had  such  good 
memories. 
But    at    last 
several  of  the 
ducks    came 
dangerously 
near        the 

shore.     When  the  oshingi  saw  this,  he  left  his  hiding- 
place,  and  crawled  toward  the  water  through  the  shrub- 

233 


THE  WORLD    OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

bery,  his  belly  touching  the  ground.  He  was  very 
cautious  in  all  his  movements.  The  subdued  quack 
ing  of  the  ducks  increased  his  ferocity  and  appetite. 

At  last,  to  the  great  joy  of  the  oshingi,  some  of  the 
ducks  came  within  a  few  feet  of  the  shore.  When  he 
saw  this,  he  said :  "  Surely  I  am  soon  to  have  a  meal." 
But  he  was  again  disappointed,  for  suddenly  they 
veered  round  and  swam  back  toward  the  middle  of 
the  stream.  Their  leader  had  given  a  peculiar  quack 
which  called  them  back ;  and,  when  they  approached,  he 
scolded  them  for  being  so  imprudent,  saying  also : 
"  Do  you  not  remember  the  ferocious  oshingi  that 
pounced  upon  us  some  time  ago  ?  Do  you  wish  the 
same  fate  as  our  comrade  ? " 

"No,  no,"   loudly  quacked  all  the  ducks. 

While  the  leader  of  the  flock  was  talking,  the 
oshingi  was  full  of  rage,  and  said :  "  Oh,  how  I  hate 
the  water  !  If  it  were  not  for  the  water,  I  should  have 
had  a  meal  of  a  duck  by  this  time ;  but  I  did  not  dare 
to  jump,  for  if  I  had  I  should  have  had  to  swim  to 
the  shore  to  save  my  life  instead  of  catching  ducks." 

The  oshingi  spent  the  whole  night  watching  the 
ducks,  and  at  last,  as  daylight  was  soon  coming,  he  went 
back  to  his  lair,  saying,  as  he  walked  away :  "  Those 
wretched  ducks  were  too  knowing  for  me  ;  but  one  of 
these  days  I  will  be  more  cunning  than  they  are." 

The  time  came  when  the  ducks  build  their  nests, 
but  these  were  on  small  islands  where  they  knew  the 
oshingis  and  other  night  prowlers  could  not  reach 
them. 

234 


CHAPTER   XXXVII 

THE    INSECTS,    APILIBISHES,    OR    BUTTERFLIES,    AND 
OSELIS,    OR    LIZARDS 

ONE  day  there  was  a  great  uproar  among  the  in 
sects  and  butterflies.  They  had  just  escaped 
being  devoured  by  the  bashikouay  ants  and  the  birds 
which  had  followed  them.  They  called  out  to  one 
another  in  their  dialect :  "  We  have  so  many  enemies 
of  all  kinds  that  we  never  know  when  we  are  to  be 
pounced  upon,  killed,  and  eaten  up.  The  birds  are 
after  us.  The  ants  are  prowling  in  every  direction 
seeking  our  lives.  The  spiders,  the  lizards,  the  frogs 
and  toads,  and  many  other  of  our  enemies  are  seeking 
for  us.  It  is  wonderful  that  we  are  able  to  live  long 
enough  to  grow  to  our  full  size." 

An  insect,  looking  toward  another  which  was  of 
the  exact  color  of  the  dead  leaves,  observed :  "  You 
are  lucky,  for  it  is  your  good  fortune  to  look  like  one 
of  the  dead  leaves  which  are  covering  the  ground.  So 
you  can  escape  the  eyes  of  your  enemies." 

cc  Well,"  replied  the  insect  to  whom  the  remark 
was  made,  "  do  you  think  I  am  better  off  than  you  ? 
What  have  you  to  complain  of?  Is  not  your  body 
of  the  color  of  a  dead  tree  limb  ?  —  and  it  takes  a  pretty 
cunning  enemy  to  find  you  where  you  are.  You  are 

235 


APILIBISHES   AND    OSELIS 

also  a  lucky  fellow.  But,"  he  added,  mournfully,  "  in 
spite  of  our  color,  many  of  us  have  been  caught ;  for 
our  enemies  are  very  cunning." 

A  vengela,  or  grasshopper,  said :  "It  is  fortunate 
for  me  that  I  am  of  the  color  of  the  grass  and  of  the 
green  leaves,  so  that  I  am  not  easily  seen  by  my  ene 
mies,  the  birds,  and  those  horrid  mogara  and  ozoni 
ants,  who  are  always  prowling  around  and  seeking  my 
life.  How  we  dislike  them  !  Also  those  long-legged 
cranes !  How  they  pick  us  up  with  their  long, 
pointed  beaks,  and  how  quick  they  are  to  espy  us ! 
I  wonder  that  I  have  thus  far  escaped." 

Another  grasshopper  said :  "  And  I  am  glad  that  I 
am  gray,  like  the  earth  and  the  dry  leaves  and  grass 
in  which  I  live." 

An  apilibish,  or  butterfly,  exactly  of  the  color  of  a 
dead  leaf,  said :  "I  am  fortunate,  for  I  am  not  easily 
noticed  when  I  stand  still ;  but  as  soon  as  I  fly  I  am 
espied  by  those  horrid  birds.  How  I  hate  birds  !  So 
many  of  them  are  seeking  the  lives  of  us  poor  butter 
flies  who  do  not  harm  them." 

Another  butterfly  of  brilliant  colors  said :  "  How 
thankful  I  am  to  be  able  to  fly  so  quickly  and  errati 
cally  !  If  it  were  not  for  this,  I  should  have  very  little 
chance  to  live,  for  the  birds  can  espy  me  so  far  away 
with  my  bright  colors.  They  make  for  me,  and  try  to 
seize  me  in  their  horrid  ugly  bills.  My  fleetness  is  a 
great  gift  indeed,  and  helps  me  to  escape  from  them." 

A  tiny  viviki,  or  mosquito,  said :  cc  How  I  hate 
spiders,  dragon  flies,  and  their  kind,  for  they  like  to 

236 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE    GREAT   FOREST 

feed  upon  us  poor  mosquitoes."  These  blood-thirsty 
little  creatures  never  thought  of  those  whom  they 
plagued  to  death,  and  who  wished  they  were  all  dead. 

An  oseli,  or  lizard,  said :  "  I  am  glad  I  am  so 
green,  so  that  I  can  approach  my  prey."  The  frogs 
and  the  toads  also  praised  their  colors,  for  they  too 
could  draw  near  their  prey  and  not  be  so  easily  seen 
by  their  enemies. 

Every  insect,  every  fly,  small  or  large,  was  com 
plaining  of  an  enemy.  Every  animal  and  bird  of  the 
forest  was  doing  the  same  thing,  according  to  its  own 
point  of  view ;  but  they  said  nothing  of  their  own 
doings  of  the  same  kind  to  every  creature  they  perse 
cuted  or  preyed  upon.  These  had  also  their  own 
point  of  view  in  regard  to  them. 

Furthermore,  a  wise  insect,  while  listening  to  the 
woes  of  one  of  his  kind,  said  :  "  If  we  had  no  ene 
mies,  we  should  multiply  so  fast  that  there  would  be 
no  room  for  all  the  insects  in  the  forest." 

A  totangoli,  or  chameleon,  said :  "  Great  gifts  have 
been  given  to  me ;  my  skin  changes  color  according  to 
my  surroundings.  If  I  am  walking  in  the  grass,  it 
turns  green ;  farther  on,  if  I  find  myself  on  a  fallen 
tree,  it  takes  the  color  of  the  bark.  During  the  day  I 
cannot  tell  the  different  shades  of  color  which  it  takes. 
This  continual  change  of  color  keeps  me  from  being 
easily  seen  by  my  enemies,  and  allows  me  to  approach 
flies  and  insects  on  which  I  feed." 


237 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII 

THE    NJOKOOS,    OR    ELEPHANTS 

OEVERAL  herds  of  njokoos  that  had  been  hunted 
k-/  mercilessly  by  men  in  the  immense  shrub-covered 
country  in  which  they  had  lived  all  their  lives,  en 
countered  one  another  one  day.  Wherever  they 
went,  the  hand  of  the  human  beings  was  against  them. 
If  they  went  one  way,  they  met  them ;  if  they  went 
another,  they  met  them  again.  They  had  no  peace, 
and  were  relentlessly  pursued  everywhere. 

So  the  njokoos  hated  human  beings,  and  wondered 
how  a  creature  so  small,  compared  with  their  huge 
bodies,  often  slew  them,  and  why  they  were  so  full 
of  evil  devices  to  set  snares  to  kill  them.  The  old 
njokoos,  who  had  seen  nearly  one  hundred  rainy 
seasons,  remembered  the  time  when  they  could  roam 
in  peace  in  vast  herds  over  a  great  part  of  the  land. 
But  now  it  was  not  so,  and  every  year  the  herds 
became  smaller  and  smaller,  so  many  were  killed. 
Every  njokoo  missed  some  friend  who  had  been  his  or 
her  constant  companion.  They  were  all  filled  with 
sorrow,  which  they  expressed  by  trumpetings.  These 
were  followed  by  a  long  silence.  The  njokoos  were 
all  thinking. 

238 


THE    NJOKOOS,    OR   ELEPHANTS 

Then  they  gave  shrill,  piercing  trumpetings  of 
anger,  so  much  dreaded  by  human  beings,  their  huge 
bodies  swayed  to  one  side,  then  to  the  other,  faster 
than  usual,  their  big  ears  (the  African  elephants  have 
much  larger  ears  than  their  cousins  from  Asia)  moved 
quickly,  like  fans,  flapping  against  their  heads,  and 
their  tails  with  their  thin,  short,  coarse,  and  stiff  black 
hair  striking  against  their  bodies. 

An  old  bull  njokoo,  the  oldest  of  them  all,  and  who 
had  been  lucky  in  escaping  thus  far  with  his  life, 
suddenly  broke  the  silence  and  said  to  the  others : 

"  Those  of  us  who  have  seen  many  seasons,  have 
killed  many  of  the  human  beings  that  came  to  attack 
us.  I  have  trampled  upon  many,  and  crushed  their 
bodies  as  flat  as  the  fallen  leaves  that  cover  the 
ground." 

"  Yes,"  shouted  all  the  elephants ;  "  we  have  de 
fended  our  friends,  and  killed  many  of  these  human 
beings."  Then  all  the  njokoos  uttered  again  trum 
petings  of  pride. 

Another  njokoo  then  said :  "  I  have  also  trampled 
upon  several  of  our  enemies,  the  human  beings,  but 
I  have  killed  most  of  them  by  seizing  them  with  my 
trunk  and  dashing  them  against  the  ground."  After 
saying  this,  he  also  trumpeted  loudly.  This  was  fol 
lowed  by  all  trumpeting  together,  and  there  was  again 
a  short  silence. 

Then  a  fierce-looking  njokoo,  with  long  heavy 
tusks,  each  weighing  over  one  hundred  pounds,  said : 
"  I  like  to  impale  the  human  beings  I  attack.  I  have 

239 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

never  forgotten  that  one  of  these  once  wounded  me 
badly.  He  made  a  terrible  noise ;  it  was  like  a  clap 
of  thunder  [the  firing  of  his  gun],  and  I  felt  a  sharp 
pain.  I  charged  and  impaled  him  to  the  whole  length 
of  my  tusks."  After  saying  this,  he  also  gave  that  pe 
culiar  shrill  trumpeting  of  pride  and  satisfaction,  and 
again  all  the  njokoos  uttered  trumpetings  of  delight. 

There  was  silence  again,  and  then  another  said :  "  I 
charged  one  of  those  horrid  human  beings  some  time 
ago,  at  full  speed,  but  he  was  very  cunning,  waited  for 
me,  and  as  I  was  on  the  point  of  putting  my  tusks 
through  him,  he  stepped  backward  and  I  missed  him 
and  passed  by.  Unfortunately  we  njokoos  cannot 
turn  back  quickly.  Our  weight  and  speed  are  so 
great  that  we  have  to  go  a  considerable  distance 
before  we  can  stop,  and  he  escaped."  After  saying 
this,  he  gave  a  peculiar  trumpeting  which  meant 
how  disappointed  he  was.  Then  all  the  njokoos  said  : 
"  Would  that  you  had  killed  this  human  being !  But  if 
the  human  beings  escape  with  their  lives  when  we  attack 
them,  we  often  also  escape  from  them  and  their  wiles." 

This  conversation  ended,  the  different  herds  of 
njokoos  went  to  pasture  among  the  shrubs,  but  did 
not  remain  in  peace  very  long,  for  a  new  set  of 
human  beings  made  their  appearance.  But  the 
njokoos  had  been  so  much  hunted  that  they  were 
always  on  the  alert,  and  were  not  to  be  caught  nap 
ping.  Their  little  piercing  eyes  were  always  on  the 
lookout.  Trumpetings  of  alarm  were  given  by  those 
who  had  seen  the  enemy,  and  the  njokoos  fled  in 

240 


THE    NJOKOOS,   OR   ELEPHANTS 

the  opposite  direction,  and  by  night  they  were  out 
of  danger. 

Two  days  afterward,  as  the  njokoos  were  quietly 
feeding,  they  saw  in  the  distance  far  away  three  or 
four  black  spots.  They  knew  they  were  not  human 
beings,  but  to  their  utter  consternation  they  soon 
recognized  them  to  be  rhinoceroses,  and  said :  "  Let 
us  flee,  for  those  rhinoceroses  are  our  worst  enemies 
after  the  human  beings.  They  are  not  afraid  of  our 
great  size  and  attack  us  and  often  impale  us  with  their 
tusk-like  horns  growing  on  their  snouts." 

So  the  elephants  fled  from  the  rhinoceroses.  The 
following  day  those  who  were  ahead  saw  toward  the 
west  a  dark  line  far  away,  rising  upon  the  horizon 
against  the  more  or  less  open  country.  All  the 
njokoos  met,  and  they  all  journeyed  toward  the  dark 
line  which  they  knew  to  be  a  forest,  and  when  they 
reached  it,  great  indeed  was  the  noise  of  their  trumpet 
ing.  But  they  decided  to  remain  outside  that  night 
and  think  the  matter  over  before  making  the  forest 
their  home.  Nevertheless,  they  were  glad  to  have  it 
so  near  at  hand,  for  they  knew  they  could  escape  the 
rhinoceroses  and  would  live  in  the  forest  in  peace,  for 
they  did  not  think  human  beings  lived  there. 

At  daylight  the  njokoos  entered  the  big  forest,  the 
largest  one  they  had  ever  seen.  After  two  days' 
wanderings,  they  said :  "  Never  have  we  seen  such  a 
thick  forest  before :  the  trees  crowd  on  one  another ; 
the  foliage  is  so  thick  that  we  cannot  see  the  sky ; 
only  flickers  of  the  sun,  piercing  through  the  leaves, 
16  241 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

appear  in  small  spots  here  and  there  on  the  ground. 
Dark  indeed  is  this  forest.  The  leaves  of  many  of 
the  trees,  and  of  the  jungle,  are  so  tender  and  sweet 
that  we  shall  thrive  in  our  new  home/* 

Then  there  was  silence,  and  a  wise  njokoo  said : 
"  Surely  there  are  no  human  beings  here.  We  shall 
be  happy  for  the  rest  of  our  lives." 

They  advanced  farther  into  the  heart  of  the  forest 
every  day.  It  was  a  new  world  to  them,  and  they 
met  creatures  they  had  never  seen  before,  and  said, 
"  Strange,  indeed,  are  the  animals  of  this  land." 

One  day,  the  new-comers  met  a  herd  of  their  own 
kin  and  found  out  that  they  spoke  the  same  language ; 
that  these  had  all  been  born  in  the  forest,  as  well  as 
their  forefathers  for  many  generations,  and  did  not 
know  of  any  other  country  but  this  great  land  of 
trees.  The  new-comers  asked  of  them  many  ques 
tions  about  their  adopted  home.  They  told  them 
that  there  were  great  mountains,  large  and  small 
rivers  and  lakes ;  that  here  and  there  there  were 
prairies,  some  large  and  some  small,  but  always  sur 
rounded  by  the  forest;  that  it  rained  a  great  deal  and 
that  there  was  terrific  thunder  and  lightning,  and  that 
tornadoes  were  frequent;  that  during  the  rainy  sea 
son  the  rivers  overflowed  their  banks ;  that  there 
were  many  bogs  in  which  often  njokoos  lost  their 
lives,  and  of  which  they  must  beware. 

The  new-comers  inquired  also  if  there  were  any 
rhinoceroses;  and  as  these  njokoos  of  the  forest  had 
never  seen  them,  the  new-comers  had  to  explain 

242 


THE   NJOKOOS,   OR   ELEPHANTS 

what  sort  of  animals  they  were,  and  were  told  they 
did  not  live  in  the  forest.  Also  they  asked  if  there 
were  human  beings  in  the  forest.  They  said,  "  We 
have  run  away  from  the  open  country,  for  there  were 
so  many  of  them  there.  They  left  us  no  peace  and 
have  killed  many  of  us." 

The  njokoos  of  the  forest  replied :  "  Yes,  indeed, 
there  are  human  beings  in  this  forest,  and  they  have 
made  all  kind  of  evil  devices,  traps,  and  pits,  and 
snares  to  kill  us.  They  are  the  greatest  enemies  we 
have,  and  we  have  had  continually  to  flee  from  them 
and  live  in  the  secluded  parts ;  but  even  there  they 
have  hunted  and  killed  us." 

This  grieved  the  others,  and  all  the  njokoos  uttered 
trumpetings  of  sadness  and  said,  "  Hard  indeed  is 
our  life." 

The  forest  njokoos  continued :  "  We  have  also 
another  enemy  in  the  forest  from  whom  we  have 
constantly  to  flee.  They  are  very  small,  but  appear 
suddenly  and  in  countless  numbers.  These  are  the 
bashikouay  ants.  Beware  of  them." 

They  told  them  also  of  the  ngina,  of  the  men  of 
the  woods,  and  of  the  great  numbers  of  snakes. 

Then  the  forest  njokoos  and  their  new  friends 
parted. 


243 


CHAPTER   XXXIX 

ADVENTURES    OF    THE    NEW    NJOKOOS 

THE  strangers,  after  they  had  left  the  forest  njo 
koos,  came  to  a  large  river,  and  were  delighted 
not  only  because  they  could  bathe  in  it,  but  because 
they  saw  the  sunshine,  which  they  had  not  seen  since 
they  had  entered  the  forest.  They  expressed  their 
joy  by  loud  trumpetings. 

They  looked  at  the  river  and  saw  that  where  they 
stood,  the  current  was  very  swift  and  strong,  so  they 
said,  "  Let  us  go  farther  down,  beyond  the  point  we 
see ;  the  water  there  will  not  be  so  swift."  And  they 
walked  toward  the  spot.  It  was  as  they  thought. 
Soon  they  were  all  having  a  grand  time  in  the  water. 
When  the  njokoos  swam,  they  threw  water  high  into 
the  air  through  their  trunks. 

While  they  were  bathing,  they  saw  two  strange- 
looking  creatures  eating  fruit  on  a  tree  by  the  river 
and  looking  at  them.  These  were  nkengos,  and  their 
yellow  faces  looked  strangely  among  the  branches. 
They  were  not  afraid  of  the  njokoos,  for  they  had 
seen  many  of  them  before.  They  had  a  special  name 
for  them,  for  all  the  animals  of  the  forest  can  tell  in 
their  own  language  to  their  kind  the  names  of  the 
animals  they  meet. 

244 


ADVENTURES  OF  THE   NEW  NJOKOOS 

But  it  was  not  so  with  the  new  njokoos.  Suddenly 
the  two  nkengos  began  talking  to  each  other.  The 
njokoos  looked  in  the  direction  of  the  voices  and  saw 
the  nkengos.  They  were  filled  with  fear  and  uttered 
trumpetings  of  danger,  left  the  water  in  a  great  hurry 
and  fled  into  the  forest,  for  they  thought  the  nkengos 
were  a  kind  of  human  beings. 

The  njokoos  were  filled  with  wonder  every  day  at 
the  sight  of  the  strange  animals  they  saw,  which  were 
so  unlike  those  of  the  open  country  they  had  left. 
They  wondered  at  the  monkeys,  at  the  parrots,  but 
above  all  at  the  men  of  the  woods.  Many  of  the 
night  prowlers  disquieted  them,  and  they  were  especially 
uncomfortable  when  they  met  or  scented  a  njego. 

One  day  the  njokoos  heard  the  footsteps  of  another 
njokoo  coming  toward  them.  This  njokoo  walked 
very  slowly,  and  they  wondered  why,  and  trumpeted. 
Then  they  heard  the  feeble  trumpeting  of  the  stranger 
answering  them.  They  waited,  and  soon  they  saw 
coming  toward  them  a  decrepit  old  njokoo.  He  was 
so  old  that  he  walked  with  very  great  difficulty.  All 
took  pity  on  him  and  had  no  desire  to  drive  him 
away. 

The  poor  old  njokoo  had  seen  many  rainy  seasons, 
and  was  full  of  rheumatism  and  backache.  All  the 
herd  looked  at  him  with  great  astonishment,  for  none 
of  them  were  so  old,  and  they  never  had  seen  a  njokoo 
of  such  great  age.  They  asked  him  many  questions. 
The  old  njokoo  replied  :  "  I  am  now  so  old  that  I 
cannot  follow  any  herd,  and  I  have  not  done  so  for 

245 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT   FOREST 

many  years.  It  is  still  longer  since  I  have  led  a  herd, 
for  when  I  was  getting  old,  a  younger  and  stronger 
njokoo  came  to  fight  me,  and  drove  me  away  from 
my  herd,  and  took  my  place  as  their  leader.  Since 
then  I  have  wandered  all  alone.  In  my  younger 
days  there  were  no  njokoos  as  strong  as  myself.  I 
defeated  all  those  who  tried  to  take  the  leadership  of 
my  herd  and  fought  and  drove  them  away." 

When  the  njokoos  were  ready  to  go,  they  asked 
the  old  njokoo  to  come  with  them. 

"  How  can  I  ?  "  he  replied.  "  I  am  too  old  to  follow 
you.  I  am  of  no  use.  I  cannot  fight  any  more.  I 
am  going  to  the  dry  land  among  the  swamps,  so  that 
the  human  beings  cannot  come  to  me,  and  there  I  will 
live  in  peace.  There  I  shall  finish  my  days  and  die." 

The  njokoos  felt  sad  when  they  heard  this,  and 
said,  "  Good-by,  good-by,  dear  old  njokoo."  "  Good- 
by,"  he  replied.  "  You  are  young  and  full  of 
life ;  go  on,  go  on."  Then  the  old  njokoo  went 
to  his  haunts  among  the  swamps,  and  the  herd  left 
him. 

A  few  days  afterward  they  came  to  a  part  of  the 
forest  where  pineapples  grew  in  abundance.  The 
njokoos  were  resting,  when  suddenly  there  appeared 
before  them  a  huge  ngina  with  his  mate.  At  this 
sight  they  fled,  trumpeting  sharply  ;  the  nginas  an 
swered  with  a  loud  roar,  and  for  protection  ascended 
a  big  tree.  The  njokoos  had  never  heard  such  a 
roaring  since  they  had  entered  the  forest,  and  were 
much  frightened,  and  thought  they  never  had  seen 

246 


ADVENTURES  OF  THE   NEW  NJOKOOS 

such  ugly  human  beings  before,  and  they  fled,  break 
ing  before  them  everything  that  was  in  their  way. 
They  had  no  time  to  trumpet,  they  fled  so  fast. 
At  last,  after  ascending  and  descending  several  steep 
mountains,  they  stopped,  for  they  were  almost  out  of 
breath,  and  said :  "  Those  are  terrible  human  beings 
that  we  have  seen.  What  voices  they  had !  How 
frightful  they  were  to  look  at ! " 

But  in  the  course  of  time  they  became  acquainted 
with  the  different  animals  of  the  forest,  and  were  no 
more  afraid  of  the  men  of  the  woods. 

It  came  to  pass  one  day  that  the  njokoos  reached 
one  of  the  prairies  found  in  the  forest.  Their  chief 
went  to  reconnoitre,  and  as  he  came  to  the  border  of 
the  forest,  he  saw,  some  distance  away,  some  human 
beings,  and  a  njokoo  lying  dead  near  them.  He 
was  himself  hidden  by  the  trees  and  looked  on,  his 
eyes  wide  open  with  astonishment  and  wonder.  He 
saw  one  of  the  human  beings  cut  the  tail  off  the  dead 
njokoo,  then  two  others  crush  his  head  and  remove 
his  two  tusks,  while  another  was  taking  off  part  of  his 
hide,  and  two  others  were  cutting  his  body  to  pieces. 
The  hide  was  for  shields  and  the  pieces  of  his  flesh 
were  for  food,  the  tail  for  a  trophy,  and  the  tusks  for 
barter. 

Silently  he  looked  on  and  then  said  to  himself, 
cc  Now  I  know  why  the  human  beings  hate  us  and 
make  war  upon  us."  Then  he  went  back  into  the 
forest  and  told  the  other  njokoos  what  he  had  seen, 
and  from  that  time  they  wandered  in  the  thickest 

247 


THE    WORLD    OF   THE   GREAT   FOREST 

part  of  the  forest  and  were  more  shy  of  the  human 
beings  than  ever. 

Several  years  passed  away.  One  dry  season  the 
swampy  lands  made  by  the  overflowing  of  rivers 
during  the  rainy  season  became  dry.  The  njokoos 
crossed  the  swamps  and  one  day  found  on  their  way 
two  skeletons  of  njokoos  that  had  been  bogged  the 
year  before  and  had  not  been  able  to  get  out.  Their 
big  tusks  were  still  fastened  in  their  skulls.  The 
njokoos  looked  sadly  at  the  skeletons  and  said,  "  Here 
lie  the  bones  of  two  fellow  njokoos."  Then  they 
uttered  low  trumpetings  of  grief  and  mournfully  con 
tinued  on  their  way,  mistrusting,  however,  the  dry 
swamps.  The  skeletons  belonged  to  two  njokoos  that 
had  taken  refuge  in  these  bog  lands,  as  they  were 
hotly  pursued  by  human  beings. 

After  wandering  for  a  number  of  days,  the  herd 
came  to  another  prairie.  "  Let  us  cross  and  go  to 
the  forest  beyond,  for  we  scent  water,"  said  they.  "It 
is  a  river,  and  it  is  a  long  time  since  we  have  had  a 
good  swim."  Halfway  over  they  felt  very  warm, 
for  it  was  exceedingly  hot,  the  rays  of  the  sun  being 
very  powerful.  They  saw  four  big  trees  growing 
close  together,  and  said,  "  Let  us  go  under  those  trees 
and  rest." 

They  had  not  been  long  under  the  trees  when  they 
saw  many  njokoos  coming  out  of  the  forest  almost 
opposite  to  where  they  stood.  They  were  led  by  a 
huge  bull,  who  looked  very  vicious  and  fierce  and  had 
very  large  tusks,  bigger  than  those  of  their  own  leader. 

248 


ADVENTURES  OF  THE    NEW  NJOKOOS 

As  soon  as  the  njokoos  under  the  trees  saw  the 
new-comers,  they  were  very  much  excited ;  their  bodies 
swayed  quickly  to  and  fro ;  they  flapped  their  ears 
and  switched  their  tails.  Their  leader  and  protector 
uttered  a  peculiar  and  piercing  trumpeting  which  was 
heard  by  the  other  njokoos.  It  was  a  blast  of  defi 
ance  to  the  other  leader,  a  trumpeting  daring  him  to 
come  and  fight.  Immediately  the  other  answered 
the  challenge.  Then  the  two  left  their  herds  and 
stalked  slowly  forward,  trumpeting  fearfully  as  they 
approached  each  other.  The  herds  on  each  side 
were  looking  placidly  at  the  chiefs  who  had  been 
their  leaders  for  a  long  time.  The  two  at  first  had 
walked  slowly,  then  faster,  then  they  stopped  and 
looked  at  each  other,  all  the  while  keeping  up  their 
dreadful  trumpeting.  At  last  they  rushed  together. 
Their  small  pig-like  eyes  looked  treacherous  and 
wicked.  They  butted,  then  they  charged  each  other. 
By  quick  motions  they  tried  to  pierce  each  other's 
flanks  with  their  tusks,  for  their  sides  in  such  a  fight 
are  their  vulnerable  points.  They  fought  at  times 
with  their  heads  downward,  and  gave  terrible  knocks 
to  each  other's  heads.  At  the  same  time  they  tried 
to  seize  each  other's  trunks.  Sometimes  they  suc 
ceeded  in  doing  this,  but  after  a  while  they  had  to  let 
go.  When  they  charged  each  other,  often  the  tusks 
of  one  would  graze  the  body  of  the  other  and  lacerate 
the  thick  hide. 

At  last  the  leader  of  the  njokoos  that  had  emerged 
from  the  forest  began  to  show  signs  of  exhaustion. 

249 


THE   WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

When  his  antagonist  saw  this,  he  renewed  his  attacks 
with  greater  fury.  Suddenly,  by  a  dexterous  move 
ment,  he  succeeded  in  plunging  his  tusks  into  the 
body  of  his  enemy  who,  instead  of  fleeing,  preferred 
to  die  fighting.  As  he  fell  he  uttered  a  low  moan  of 
pain,  then  dropped  dead. 

The  victorious  njokoo,  uttering  trumpetings  of 
pride,  rejoined  his  followers  under  the  trees,  and  all 
approached  the  smaller  herd,  who  then  chose  the 
victor  for  their  leader.  Thus  the  two  herds  became 
one,  and,  this  done,  they  repaired  to  the  river  and 
bathed  in  its  waters  and  had  a  grand  time  together. 


250 


CHAPTER   XL 

EVIL    DAYS    FOR    THE    NJOKOOS 

EVIL  days  were  now  coming  for  the  njokoos. 
During  all  the  years  they  had  been  in  the  for 
est  they  had  escaped  many  dangers,  but  henceforth 
they  were  to  encounter  great  peril  and  disaster.  In 
their  wanderings  they  came  at  last  to  a  part  of  the 
immense  forest  where  there  were  villages  inhabited 
by  wild,  fierce  human  beings. 

These  human  beings  were  very  cunning.  They 
spent  a  great  part  of  their  lives  sleeping  in  the  forest, 
hunting  njokoos  for  the  sake  of  their  ivory  tusks, 
which  they  could  barter;  besides,  they  liked  njokoo 
meat  very  much.  They  had  all  kinds  of  contrivances 
to  trap  njokoos.  They  dug  many  pits  for  them 
to  fall  into  and  made  many  heinous,  or  huge  beams 
armed  with  big  iron  spikes,  suspended  among  the 
trees,  with  lianas  as  ropes  attached  to  them  and  com 
ing  to  the  ground,  so  that  when  the  njokoos  touched 
these,  the  heavy  hanous,  with  their  iron  spikes,  fell 
upon  their  backs. 

One  day  as  the  njokoos  were  rambling,  suddenly 
two  hanous  fell  upon  the  backs  of  two  of  their  num 
ber,  broke  their  spines  and  killed  them.  The  crash 
the  hanous  made  in  falling  frightened  all  the  other 

251 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT    FOREST 

njokoos,  for  they  did  not  know  what  it  was,  and  they 
fled  with  the  utmost  speed.  The  noise  they  made 
in  their  flight  was  fearful,  as  they  crashed  through  the 


''* 


m 


jungle.  After  a  long 
run  they  stopped,  and 
looking  at  their  num 
ber  saw  that  two  were 
missing,  for  they  knew 
each  other  well.  There  was 
great  sorrow  among  them. 
They  said,  "  Let  us  go  back  where  we 
heard  the  crash.  Perhaps  our  missing 
companions  are  there."  For  when  they 
had  heard  the  hanou  fall,  they  were  so  frightened  that 
they  had  no  time  to  look  and  see  what  had  happened. 
So  they  went  back  ;  and  when  they  arrived  at  the  place 
where  the  crash  had  occurred,  they  saw  their  two  old 

252 


EVIL   DAYS    FOR   THE    NJOKOOS 

companions  lying  on  the  ground  dead.  They  uttered 
trumpetings  of  sorrow  at  the  sight.  They  came  round 
the  poor  bodies,  and  grasped  their  legs  with  their 
trunks  to  pull  them  up,  but  the  legs  fell  back.  They 
seized  their  trunks,  but  these  also  fell  back  on  the 
ground.  They  trumpeted  to  them,  but  they  did  not 
answer.  When  they  had  made  sure  that  they  were 
dead,  they  left  the  place,  but  not  before  they  had  taken 
a  careful  look  at  the  hanous. 

They  had  not  gone  a  long  way  before  another 
hanou  fell  upon  one  of  them.  The  rest  fled  in  great 
dismay.  As  they  were  running,  they  saw  another 
njokoo  suddenly  disappear  under  the  ground.  He 
had  fallen  into  a  pit  dug  by  human  beings  to  catch 
njokoos.  It  had  been  made  with  a  great  deal  of  cun 
ning.  Small  sticks  were  placed  close  together  over 
the  pit,  and  covered  with  earth  and  dead  leaves,  so 
that  the  spot  looked  exactly  like  the  ground.  The 
elephants  ran  faster  than  they  had  ever  done  in  their 
lives  before. 

The  next  day  the  njokoos  returned  to  the  place 
where  their  companion  had  suddenly  disappeared. 
When  they  approached,  they  heard  his  dying  moans. 
They  called  to  him,  "  Come  to  us  ;  come  to  us :  we 
have  come  to  help  you  out;"  but  no  answer  came 
back  to  them,  only  the  same  moans.  Some  went  to 
the  border  of  the  pit  and  saw  that  it  was  very  deep,  and 
at  the  bottom  was  their  poor  friend  at  death's  door. 
They  knew  the  poor  wounded  njokoo  was  dying,  for 
his  legs  were  all  broken  from  his  own  heavy  weight 

253 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT   FOREST 

when  he  fell.  The  walls  of  the  pit  were  perpendicular 
so  they  could  not  reach  him.  Then  they  left,  saying, 
"  Let  us  flee  from  this  country ;  it  is  the  worst  we 
have  ever  seen." 

In  their  eagerness  to  flee  after  the  misfortunes  that 
had  happened  to  them,  the  njokoos  crossed  high  and 
steep  mountains  all  covered  with  dense  forest  and 
at  last  thought  themselves  safe.  But  one  morn 
ing  they  heard  a  great  noise  behind  them.  This 
noise  was  made  by  human  voices.  "  Let  us  flee," 
cried  the  njokoos  again,  and  they  broke  into  a  run, 
when  suddenly  they  came  upon  a  network  of  lianas 
twisted  together,  forming  a  kind  of  stockade,  which 
had  been  made  by  human  beings.  As  the  unhappy 
njokoos  tried  to  break  through,  human  beings  who 
had  stationed  themselves  in  the  trees  threw  spears  at 
them,  and  many  were  killed,  only  a  few  escaping  with 
their  lives.  Among  those  who  fell  were  some  of  the 
wisest  of  the  herd.  From  that  time  on,  the  njokoos 
never  long  enjoyed  peace. 

After  many  years  of  wanderings,  only  two  remained 
of  that  big  and  splendid  herd,  —  an  old  njokoo  and 
his  mate.  The  old  one  said  sorrowfully:  "Dear, 
we  have  been  companions  for  many  rainy  and  dry 
seasons.  We  started  in  life  together  when  we  were 
young,  and  now  we  are  old ;  all  our  folks  have  been 
killed,  and  we  are  left  alone.  Our  life  has  been  a  hard 
one  indeed ;  we  have  had  hardly  any  peace ;  our  time 
has  been  spent  in  trying  to  escape  from  our  enemies, 
the  wicked  human  beings.  Many  times,  to  avoid 

254 


EVIL   DAYS    FOR   THE    NJOKOOS 

them,  we  have  taken  refuge  in  the  highest  mountains, 
in  the  thickest  part  of  the  forest  and  jungle,  in  impene 
trable  swamps,  in  most  inaccessible  places ;  but  they 
have  always  managed  to  find  us.  Though  we  are  the 
strongest  and  biggest  creatures  of  this  forest,  we  have 
had  to  flee  before  them." 

Then  he  rubbed  his  body  against  hers  and  trum 
peted  his  affection,  which  she  returned  also,  for  they 
loved  each  other  very  much,  and  were  especially  drawn 
together  by  the  misfortunes  they  had  suffered  in  com 
mon.  They  did  not  know  where  to  go.  They  were 
in  sore  distress.  They  had  escaped  from  the  land  of 
hanous,  of  pits  and  spears,  and  now  after  a  long  jour 
ney  in  which  they  had  crossed  many  steep  mountains 
and  swum  across  many  rivers,  they  had  come  to  the 
land  of  guns.  They  regretted  deeply  the  loss  of  their 
old  leader,  for  they  remembered  his  great  skill  and  how 
he  avoided  many  dangers.  cc  One  of  the  great  misfor 
tunes  of  us  njokoos,"  they  said,  "  is  that  our  tracks 
are  very  conspicuous,  for  we  are  so  big  and  heavy." 

After  more  wanderings,  they  came  to  a  country 
where  the  forest  was  full  of  deep  narrow  rivers  and 
swamps.  They  entered  it  and  remained  on  the  dry 
land  between  the  swamps,  and  there  the  two  lived  to  a 
very  great  old  age. 


255 


CHAPTER   XLI 

NJOKOOS    AND    THEIR    BABIES 

ANJOKOO  and  her  baby,  a  few  days  old,  were 
by  themselves  in  the  great  forest.  Mamma 
Njokoo  had  left  the  herd  to  which  she  belonged,  for 
her  little  one  was  too  small  and  could  not  climb  the 
steep  mountains  and  keep  pace  with  the  big  njokoos 
when  they  were  afraid  and  in  full  run.  It  is  the  cus 
tom  of  the  mamma  njokoos  always  to  leave  the  others 
when  they  have  a  little  one. 

The  baby  njokoo's  little  eyes  looked  very  cunning. 
His  bit  of  a  trunk  was  going  continually  up  and  down, 
his  ears  flapped  against  his  head,  and  his  tail  was 
always  moving.  To  his  mamma  he  was  a  very  sweet 
little  baby  njokoo. 

Often  when  Mamma  Njokoo  looked  at  her  little  one 
she  would  think  of  all  the  troubles  and  dangers  that 
were  ahead  of  him.  The  njokoos  have  wonderful 
memories,  and  she  remembered  all  that  she  had  gone 
through  during  her  life,  and  how  many  escapes  she 
had  had  in  running  away  from  those  horrid  human 
beings,  whom  she  dreaded  and  hated  so  much,  and 
how  many  of  her  friends  had  been  snared  and  killed 
in  their  meshes.  As  she  thought  of  all  these  tribula- 

256 


NJOKOOS   AND    THEIR    BABIES 

tions  and  dangers,  she  said,  half  to  herself  and  half  to 
her  little  one  :  "  Dear,  as  long  as  you  are  small,  I 
shall  fight  and  defend  you.  Then  when  you  are  big 
you  will  have  to  fight  and  run  for  yourself.  You  will 
have  to  be  very  wary  if  you  want  to  reach  your  full 


size." 


One  day  she  was  delighted  when  she  saw  him  pick 
up  some  leaves  with  his  trunk  and  put  them  into  his 
mouth,  for  the  njokoos'  trunks  are  their  hands.  It 
was  the  first  time  that  he  had  plucked  leaves.  He 
began  to  know  how  to  get  his  own  living.  His 
mamma  loved  him  dearly,  and  was  by  his  side  all 
the  time,  looking  at  him  in  such  a  tender  way, 
caressing  him  with  her  big  trunk,  and  once  in  a 
while  giving  soft  trumpetings  of  affection,  which 
showed  how  dear  he  was  to  her.  So  they  spent  their 
days  together,  and  if  they  met  some  big  animal, 
Mamma  Njokoo  would  give  shrill  trumpetings  of 
anger  and  come  close  to  him  to  protect  him.  One 
night  she  stood  still,  close  to  him,  until  daylight, 
for  she  had  scented  a  njego. 

One  day  they  met  another  njokoo  with  her  baby, 
and  they  were  glad  to  see  each  other,  for  both  felt 
lonely.  They  uttered  trumpetings  of  joy  and  said, 
<c  Let  us  stay  together ;  it  will  not  be  so  lonely/*  And 
from  that  day  they  became  companions.  When  they 
found  branches  with  leaves  that  were  tender,  they 
would  reach  them  with  their  trunks,  and  pull  them 
down  and  break  them,  and  give  them  to  their  little 
ones. 

17  257 


THE   WORLD    OF    THE   GREAT   FOREST 

As  time  passed  away,  they  met  other  njokoos  with 
their  babies.  All  made  a  herd  entirely  composed  of 
mamma  and  baby  njokoos,  and  the  young  ones  liked 
to  play  together  and  became  very  fond  of  one  another. 
The  old  ones  thought  they  had  never  seen  such  a 
pretty  set  of  little  njokoos  in  their  lives,  and  each  was 
very  proud  of  the  one  belonging  to  her. 

Once,  one  of  the  little  ones  got  entangled  among 
the  lianas,  or  wild  vines,  for  the  part  of  the  forest  in 
which  they  were  was  full  of  them.  He  trumpeted 
plaintively.  As  soon  as  the  mother  heard  him,  she 
came  to  him,  and  with  her  trunk  set  him  free,  and 
then  scolded  him  for  being  so  careless,  and  pointed 
out  to  him  the  thick  lianas  that  were  so  close  together 
that  they  formed  a  trap  for  little  njokoos  to  get  into, 
and  taught  him  to  look  out  for  such  places,  and  told 
him  thereafter  to  be  shy  of  them. 

It  is  wonderful  what  the  njokoos  can  do  with  their 
trunks.  The  hands  of  human  beings  could  not  be 
more  nimble  and  dexterous,  and  it  requires  a  good 
deal  of  thinking  to  separate  one  liana  from  another. 
But  njokoos  are  very  ingenious  and  intelligent. 

One  day,  as  one  of  the  mamma  njokoos  was  busy 
plucking  with  her  trunk  leaves  that  were  high  up,  she 
heard  a  noise.  Her  little  one  had  fallen  into  a  deep 
hole  made  by  heavy  rains.  She  uttered  peculiar  trum- 
petings  which  showed  her  anxiety,  and  meant,  "  I  am 
coming,  dear,  I  am  coming,"  as  she  ran  toward  the 
place  and  saw  him  looking  at  her  imploringly  and  call 
ing  for  her  by  trumpeting,  which  meant,  in  the  lan- 

258 


NJOKOOS   AND    THEIR    BABIES 

guage  of  the  njokoo  children,  "  Oh,  mamma,  help  me 
out  of  this  hole." 

Poor  Mamma  Njokoo  was  very  much  excited  and 
went  all  around  the  hole  to  see  what  she  could  do  to 
rescue  her  baby.  She  bent  down  on  her  knees  and 
lowered  her  trunk  to  reach  him,  and  tried  to  pull  him 
up,  but  this  did  not  do,  for  he  was  heavy  and  the  sides 
of  the  hole  were  too  steep.  In  the  mean  time  another 
Mamma  Njokoo,  who  heard  her  cries  of  distress,  came 
to  see  what  was  the  matter  and  how  she  could  help. 

When  Mamma  Njokoo  saw  that  she  could  not  suc 
ceed  in  the  way  she  had  at  first  tried,  she  began  to 
dig  the  ground  with  her  big  forefeet  near  the  border 
of  the  hole,  tearing  up  at  the  same  time  the  roots  of 
the  trees  that  were  in  her  way ;  and  finally  she  suc 
ceeded  in  making  a  sloping  way  going  to  the  bottom 
of  the  hole.  It  had  been  hard  work.  After  she  got 
through  this  work,  the  little  one  walked  out,  to  the 
delight  of  his  mamma,  who  nevertheless  gave  him  a 
scolding  for  being  so  careless. 

The  big  njokoos  and  their  little  ones  continued  to 
wander  through  the  forest,  other  njokoos  with  their 
babies  joining  them.  One  day  the  big  njokoos  scented 
water  and  were  delighted,  for  it  was  quite  a  while  since 
they  had  had  a  good  bath.  They  all  wanted  one,  and 
wished  also  their  little  ones  to  enjoy  a  swim. 

They  walked  as  fast  as  they  could  toward  the  water, 
and  at  last  came  to  a  beautiful  river.  At  this  sight  all 
the  mamma  njokoos  gave  trumpetings  of  delight,  and 
soon  after  they  were  all  in  the  river  swimming,  throw- 

259 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT   FOREST 

ing  water  up  with  their  trunks,  and  having  lots  of  fun, 
trumpeting  to  each  other,  "  How  nice  the  water  feels  ! 
How  I  enjoy  my  bath  !  "  They  were  all  having  a 
grand  time.  The  little  ones  rested  on  the  backs  of 
their  mothers  when  they  were  swimming. 

One  Mamma  Njokoo  went  a  little  farther  than  she 
ought  to  have  gone.  Suddenly  she  was  carried  into 
the  very  rapid  current  of  the  river,  which  ran  with 
great  force,  and  the  little  njokoo  was  washed  off  her 
back  by  it.  She  gave  cries  of  distress  when  she  saw 
this.  But  she  was  carried  still  farther  into  the  middle 
of  the  stream,  and  the  baby  was  carried  farther  and 
farther  away  from  her.  Poor  Mamma  Njokoo  was 
grievously  distressed.  She  was  afraid  her  little  one 
would  be  drowned.  He  also  looked  at  his  mother, 
trumpeting,  "  Save  me,  save  me,  mamma !  "  For 
tunately  he  could  swim  a  little. 

Mamma  Njokoo  at  last  got  close  to  him,  having 
succeeded  in  getting  him  in  her  lee,  her  big  body 
protecting  him  from  the  strong  current,  as  he  swam 
alongside  of  her.  There  was  great  excitement  among 
all  the  njokoos  when  they  saw  one  of  the  little  ones 
drifting  away,  and  they  followed  her,  swimming  along 
the  shore,  trumpeting  advice  and  telling  her  what 
to  do. 

The  two  at  last  were  carried  into  a  big  eddy  and 
there  rested  for  a  while.  Then  Mamma  Njokoo  said 
to  her  little  one,  "  We  are  going  to  get  out  of  this 
eddy  and  into  the  strong  current  again.  You  must 
manage  to  keep  close  to  me."  As  soon  as  they  swam 

260 


NJOKOOS   AND    THEIR    BABIES 

out  of  the  eddy,  the  current  was  so  strong  that  they 
were  carried  down  the  river,  but  Mamma  Njokoo  swam 
toward  the  shore  and  at  last  succeeded  in  coming  to  a 
part  of  the  stream  where  the  water  did  not  run  so  fast. 
Then  the  little  one  succeeded  in  getting  on  the  top 
of  his  mamma's  back  when  they  were  in  still  water. 


There  was  great  rejoicing  among  all  the  njokoos  when 
they  reached  the  land,  for  they  loved  one  another 
dearly.  All  the  little  njokoos  were  also  very  glad. 
They  had  become  great  friends. 

The  herd  of  mammas  and  little  ones  resumed  their 
wanderings.  Twice  a  big  njokoo,  who  scented  them, 
came  up  as  if  to  join  them,  but  they  trumpeted  to 
him :  "  Go  away.  Go  away  ;  we  do  not  want  you. 
We  have  to  walk  slowly  in  the  forest  on  account  of 
our  little  ones." 

But,  as  time  passed,  the  little  njokoos  grew  big. 

261 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT   FOREST 

They  could  run  fast.  One  day,  as  all  the  herd  were 
together,  they  heard  the  shrill  trumpeting  of  the  big 
njokoo.  He  had  scented  them  and  was  coming  to 
ward  them.  Soon  he  was  among  them,  and  they  were 
all  glad.  He  became  their  chief  and  led  them,  and 
was  ready  to  fight  any  big  njokoo  that  wanted  to  take 
his  place. 


262 


CHAPTER   XLII 

THE    MBOYOS,   OR   JACKALS 

A  LARGE  pack  of  mboyos  with  long  grayish 
hair,  darker  on  the  back,  and  with  straight 
ears  (they  might  have  been  taken  for  wolves  or  big 
hairy  dogs  at  home),  were  restless.  Their  leader, 
who  was  older  and  somewhat  larger  and  more  power 
ful  than  his  followers,  was  standing  still  and  thinking. 

"  Chief,"  said  the  mboyos,  "  we  are  hungry,  and  as 
we  look  from  the  border  of  the  forest  where  we  hide, 
over  the  big  prairie,  we  see  no  prey  ;  no  kambis  or 
ncheris  or  any  other  animals.  You  are  our  chief; 
lead  us  where  there  is  food." 

"  Be  patient,"  said  the  old  chief  to  them.  "  You 
know  well  that  we  have  to  work  for  our  living,  and 
we  have  been  unlucky  of  late.  Prey  has  been  very 
scarce.  I  am  thinking  where  to  lead  you.  I  have 
been  your  chief  for  several  rainy  seasons  and  have 
led  you  many  times  to  success.  He  who  waits  and 
is  patient  gets  the  game." 

Suddenly  one  of  the  mboyos  gave  a  peculiar  shriek, 
which  was  immediately  taken  up  by  all  the  pack.  It 
was  the  signal  for  a  long  general  chorus  of  fearful  dis 
mal  screams  that  filled  the  air  with  unearthly  noise. 
They  continued  to  make  this  horrid  din  for  quite  a 

263 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

while  ;  then,  as  by  one  accord,  they  all  stopped  at 
once.  What  this  noise  means,  only  the  mboyos  know. 
The  other  animals  that  were  in  the  forest  said,  "  The 
mboyos  speak.  What  is  the  matter  with  them  ?  " 

After  this  howling,  they  looked  inquiringly  at  their 
chief,  again  ready  to  obey  his  orders.  "  Follow  me," 
he  said  to  them,  in  the  silent  talk  of  the  mboyos. 

He  took  the  lead,  and  they  followed  the  border  of 
the  prairie,  hidden  by  the  forest.  They  walked  against 
the  wind,  so  that  they  could  scent  prey  afar  off.  They 
travelled  a  long  way,  the  old  chief  walking  ahead. 
Suddenly  he  stopped,  and  all  the  mboyos  stood  still. 
He  spoke  to  them,  saying,  "  I  scent  game  far  away. 
Kambis  are  pasturing  in  the  prairie.  Surely  I  am  not 
mistaken." 

So  they  continued  their  march,  and  after  a  while 
they  saw  a  herd  of  kambis.  There  was  great  joy 
among  the  mboyos  at  the  sight.  Their  appetites, 
which  had  already  reached  starvation  point,  seemed 
to  increase  tenfold.  A  good  meal  was  in  sight. 

"  Let  us  be  wary,"  said  the  chief.  "  Let  us  be  true 
mboyos  and  use  all  the  cunning  that  belongs  to  our 
tribe.  Otherwise  we  shall  miss  our  game,  and  then 
we  shall  have  to  fight  with  hunger."  The  mboyos 
prepared  themselves  to  act  as  they  always  do  when 
they  attack  their  prey.  They  left  the  woods  and 
entered  the  prairie,  one  by  one,  led  by  their  trusted 
leader.  They  were  hidden  by  the  grass  as  they  ma 
noeuvred  to  approach  the  unsuspecting  kambis.  The 
mboyos  were  far  apart  at  first.  They  crept  into  the 

264 


THE    MBOYOS,    OR   JACKALS 

lee  of  the  kambis,  then  turned  and  at  last  succeeded 
in  making  a  large  ring  about  the  game.  At  every 
circle  they  made,  the  ring  became  smaller  and  smaller. 
Suddenly  one  of  the  kambis,  looking  at  the  others, 
said,  "  I  scent  mboyos ;  let  us  flee."  They  started, 


but  soon  scented  mboyos  around  them  everywhere, 
no  matter  where  they  went.  In  the  mean  time  the 
ring  of  the  mboyos  became  quite  small,  then  closed 
together  and  succeeded  in  corralling  the  kambis. 
Several  kambis  were  paralyzed  with  fear ;  they  were 
hypnotized  by  the  mboyos.  The  whole  pack  of 
mboyos  divided  in  two,  overpowered  some  of  the 
kambis,  and  soon  were  tearing  their  poor  prostrate 
bodies.  After  their  meal,  followed  by  their  chief,  the 
mboyos  retired  once  more  to  the  border  of  the  forest, 
and  then  thanked  and  praised  him  for  his  great  cunning. 

265 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE   GREAT  FOREST 

After  this  they  made  their  toilet,  and  licked  the 
blood  from  their  chaps.  They  laughed  as  only 
mboyos  do,  saying,  "  How  well  we  corralled  the  kam- 
bis !  only  a  few  of  them  escaped.  How  sweet  they 
tasted !  What  a  pity  we  could  not  eat  all  those  we 
killed,  and  had  to  leave  so  much  meat !  but  mboyos 
can  only  eat  so  much  and  no  more." 

Looking  toward  the  place  where  so  much  of  the 
kambi  meat  had  been  left,  they  saw  two  large  vultures 
alighting  upon  the  carcasses  and  said,  "  How  keen  is 
the  sight  of  the  vultures !  we  have  left  them  a  good 
meal."  The  two  vultures  made  a  bountiful  repast 
and  said  to  themselves  :  cc  Soon  it  will  be  sunset.  To 
morrow  we  will  come  again." 

In  the  mean  time  the  mboyos  had  departed  for  the 
thickest  part  of  the  forest. 

That  same  night  could  have  been  seen  at  some  dis 
tance  through  the  dim  moonlight,  for  the  moon  was 
on  the  wane,  a  pack  of  ugly-looking  striped  hyenas. 
As  they  walked  along,  they  looked  queer,  with  their 
forelegs  higher  than  their  hind  ones  ;  they  were  prowl 
ing  in  search  of  food.  Twice  they  all  gave  a  peculiar 
cry,  horrid  to  listen  to,  which  filled  the  country  for 
miles  with  its  reverberations. 

They  walked  silently,  sniffing  the  air  as  they  went 
along.  Suddenly  they  scented  meat.  At  this  dis 
covery  there  was  great  excitement  among  all  of  them, 
for  they  wanted  a  meal  badly,  being  very  hungry. 
The  meat  they  scented  was  that  of  the  kambis  which 
the  mboyos  had  killed. 

266 


"A  pack  of  ugly-looking  striped  hyenas 


THE    MBOYOS,   OR   JACKALS 

They  hastened  their  pace  and  reached  the  carcasses 
of  the  kambis,  and  soon  all  were  busy  tearing  the 
flesh,  holding  the  pieces  firmly  on  the  ground  with 
their  forepaws,  which  are  armed  with  big  heavy  claws. 

They  ate  every  particle  of  the  meat ;  only  the  bare 
bones  were  left.  Then  they  departed,  grinning  and 
saying  :  "  If  other  hyenas  come  here,  they  will  find 
only  bones.  We  do  not  care.  We  have  had  a  boun 
tiful  meal."  Then  they  went  toward  the  forest  and 
disappeared  in  its  depths,  not  stopping  until  they  came 
to  a  very  dark,  dense  region.  Suddenly,  like  the 
m  boy os,  they  gave  in  chorus  a  hyena  concert  which 
was  something  unearthly  and  fearful. 

Early  the  next  morning  the  two  vultures  left  the  tree 
where  they  had  spent  the  night,  to  return  for  the  rest 
of  the  kambi  meat.  They  felt  very  happy  at  the  pros 
pect  of  getting  an  early  breakfast,  and  said  to  each  other, 
"  We  will  not  leave  this  neighborhood  until  we  have 
eaten  all  the  flesh,  and  this  will  take  us  several  days." 

Great  indeed  was  their  disappointment  when  they 
reached  the  place  and  saw  nothing  but  the  bare  bones 
of  the  kambis ;  they  looked  at  them  and  walked 
slowly  around  them,  but  not  a  bit  of  flesh  was  to 
be  seen.  "  Oh,"  said  the  vultures,  "  these  horrid 
hyenas  have  been  here  during  the  night,  and  have 
eaten  everything.  They  have  not  even  left  a  morsel 
for  us ;"  and  they  rose,  soaring  high  in  the  air  in  their 
beautiful  flight  to  see  if  they  could  discover  elsewhere 
the  remains  of  some  dead  animal. 


267 


CHAPTER   XLIII 

fS,    OR    FISH,    AND    THEIR    ENEMIES 

AS  the  dry  season  was  approaching,  many  of  the 
fish  of  the  sea  said  to  one  another:  "  It  is  time 
for  us  to  go  to  the  rivers  of  the  great  forest  where  we 
were  born,  for  the  dry  season  is  at  hand,  and  the  time 
is  coming  for  us  to  lay  our  eggs." 

One  of  the  habits  of  many  fish  of  the  sea  is  that 
throughout  their  lives  they  always  go  back  year  after 
vear  to  the  river  in  which  they  were  born.  This  pil 
grimage  takes  place  during  the  dry  season  when  the 
rivers  are  clear,  the  current  less  swift,  and  the  water 
lower.  The  fish  know  the  seasons  as  well  as  birds. 

When  the  fish  in  shoals  began  their  migration 
towards  the  coast,  they  knew  their  way  well  through 
the  depths  of  the  sea  to  those  rivers  just  as  if  they 
had  had  a  star  to  guide  them.  They  also  had  land 
marks,  for  the  bottom  of  the  ocean  has  tall  mountains, 
hills,  narrow  and  broad  valleys,  just  like  the  surface  of 
the  earth ;  it  has  also  varied  forests  and  growths  such 
as  seaweeds,  coral  trees,  etc. 

While  the  fish  swam  along  the  shore  they  recog 
nized  the  rivers  from  which  they  had  originally  come, 
and  ascended  these,  while  other  fish  that  followed  in 
their  wake  continued  to  swim  along  the  coast  farther 

268 


THE    NSHIEYS,   OR    FISH 

on  until  they  came  to  their  own  river.     Not  all  that 
started  reached  their  destination.     They  were  much 


diminished  in  numbers,  the 
bigger  fish  having  gobbled 
up  many  on  the  way. 

When  the  fish  were  on 
their  migration,  many  birds 
who  prey  on  fish,  frogs, 
and  other  creatures,  and 
who  were  in  far  away  lands, 
said  in  their  turn  :  "  Now 
it  is  about  time  for  us  to 
begin  our  yearly  journey  to 
the  rivers  and  lagoons  of  the  great  forest,  for  the  fish  are 
coming  there,  and  the  ponds  in  the  prairies  by  the  sea 
are  going  to  be  dry  or  shallow,  and  it  will  be  easy  for 
us  to  catch  our  prey." 

Among  the  birds  that  thus  spoke  were  large  long- 

269 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT   FOREST 

legged  cranes  and  storks,  also  fishing  eagles,  herons, 
flamingoes,  ibis,  many  pelicans,  and  the  ugly  mara 
bouts  who  have  so  many  fine  feathers. 

They  all  rejoiced  in  advance  at  the  prospect  of 
future  good  meals. 

The  big  cranes,  storks,  and  herons  said :  "  Our 
long,  sharp,  pointed  beaks,  our  long  legs,  and  power 
ful  wings  are  great  possessions,  for  they  help  us  to  get 
our  living.  With  our  legs  we  wade  in  the  water  to 
seek  our  food ;  with  our  slender  necks  and  long  beaks 
we  seize  our  prey,  and  when  our  hunting  grounds  are 
far  apart,  our  wings  carry  us  swiftly  to  them. 

"  We  have  also  very  good  eyesight,  but  in  spite  of 
all  the  gifts  we  possess,  if  we  were  not  wary  and  intelli 
gent,  we  should  not  be  able  to  get  our  living." 

The  pelicans  praised  their  big,  webbed  feet  which 
allow  them  to  swim  fast,  their  big  pouches  which  could 
hold  many  fish,  and  their  mighty  wings  which  enabled 
them  to  rise  from  the  water  and  fly  when  they  are 
heavy  with  their  pouches  full  of  fish. 

All  these  birds  began  their  journey  at  about  the 
same  time.  Those  that  were  farther  away  or  who  did 
not  fly  so  fast  started  before  those  that  were  swifter  on 
the  wing,  for  all  knew  exactly  how  long  it  would  take 
to  make  the  journey,  and  all  hoped  to  be  the  first  to 
arrive  on  the  hunting-ground. 

Many  of  the  ibis  had  started  from  the  shores  of  the 
Nile,  where  in  ancient  days  their  kin  was  sacred  among 
the  Egyptians. 

As  one  looked  up  into  the  sky  he  could  see  at 

270 


THE    NSHIEYS,   OR   FISH 

times  birds  flying  from  the  east,  north,  and  south 
(only  gulls  from  the  west,  where  the  ocean  was),  some 
following  the  shore,  all  on  their  way  to  the  rivers, 
lagoons,  and  prairies  of  the  great  forest.  Some  of 
them  were  in  pairs,  others  in  larger  numbers.  Those 
who  were  in  flocks  had  their  leaders  at  their  heads. 

How  strange  they  looked  as  they  flew  through  the 
air !  The  great  cranes  and  storks,  with  their  long  legs 
stretched  back  to  their  full  length  and  parallel  with 
their  bodies  and  protected  by  them,  so  that  in  their 
flight  they  might  not  be  impeded  by  the  wind.  How 
knowing  they  were ! 

The  pelicans  had  their  feet  close  to  their  bodies,  for 
otherwise  these  would  have  obstructed  their  flight  if 
they  had  been  hanging  down. 

Onward  and  onward  they  flew,  covering  an  immense 
distance  in  a  day,  resting  here  and  there  to  feed  or  to 
sleep.  At  last  they  all  reached  their  destination. 

The  cranes,  the  storks,  walked  for  prey  in  the 
prairies,  where  there  was  water,  or  where  it  had  almost 
disappeared.  The  flamingoes,  the  herons,  the  ibis, 
and  their  kind  were  busy  along  the  shores  of  rivers 
and  lagoons ;  the  pelicans  swam  about  majestically. 
All  had  a  good  time,  but  the  fish,  the  frogs,  and 
other  creatures  had  not,  for  their  enemies  the  birds, 
had  arrived  in  great  numbers. 


271 


CHAPTER   XLIV 

THE    KONGOO,    ONE    OF    THE     FISHING    EAGLES 

ONE  day  a  kongoo,  with  white  body  and  black 
wings,  looking  at  his  mate,  who  was  of  a  dark 
grayish  color,  said  to  her:  "  It  is  about  time  for  us  to 
go  to  the  Eliva  Monon  (the  river  of  mullets),  for  the 
dry  season  has  begun  there,  and  the  river  will  be  full 
of  mullets  and  other  fish.  It  is  a  long  journey,  and 
we  shall  have  to  get  our  living  on  the  way.  We  can 
not  fish  by  the  shore,  for  heavy  white  breakers  roll 
on  the  beach  all  the  way.  When  we  undertake  this 
long  journey,  we  shall  have  as  usual  to  tarry  by  the 
sides  of  the  rivers  and  lagoons  near  the  sea  in  order 
to  get  our  food." 

The  two  kongoos  loved  to  go  to  the  Eliva  Monon 
every  dry  season,  for  they  had  been  born  by  its 
waters,  had  built  their  nests  and  had  raised  their  young 
ones  there.  The  next  day  they  prepared  themselves 
for  their  journey,  for  by  following  the  shore  the  Eliva 
Monon  was  nearly  three  thousand  miles  away.  They 
took  oil  from  the  bag  which  nature  had  provided  for 
them,  and  with  their  greasy  beaks  combed  their  feath 
ers,  which  took  them  an  hour  or  two.  When  their 
toilet  was  made,  they  went  fishing,  so  that  they  should 

272 


THE    KONGOO 

not  start  with  empty  stomachs,  and  after  their  meal 
they  combed  their  feathers  again  ;  but  it  took  them 
only  a  short  time,  and  they  finished  by  passing  their 
beaks  over  their  thick  powerful  talons.  Then  they 
rose  in  the  air,  and  flew  toward  the  Eliva  Monon, 
their  big  spreading  wings  carrying  them  very  fast. 

The  two  kongoos  knew  every  part  of  the  shore, 
the  capes,  the  smallest  points,  the  bays,  the  coves,  the 
rivers,  the  hills,  the  trees  ;  nothing  escaped  their  eyes. 
This  minute  knowledge  of  the  coast  is  given  to  all  the 
fishing  eagles.  No  sea  captain,  no  pilot,  no  matter 
how  expert,  can  recognize  any  spot  or  part  of  the 
coast  so  well  or  so  quickly  as  the  fishing  eagles. 

As  they  flew  and  passed  over  creeks,  lagoons,  and 
rivers,  they  saw  in  the  water  flocks  of  pelicans,  and 
would  say  to  each  other,  "  See,  the  pelicans  are  fish 
ing  ;  look  at  their  pouches  ;  they  are  filled  with  fish/' 
Farther  on  they  would  see  red  long-legged  flamingoes 
walking  in  the  water,  or  flying  over  it,  looking  like  a 
mass  of  burning  embers.  They  saw  also  many  long- 
legged  cranes,  nearly  five  feet  high,  ugly  marabouts 
with  their  beautiful  light  feathers,  and  herons,  ducks, 
and  other  aquatic  birds.  The  kongoos  saw  also  over 
the  lagoon  beautiful  swallows  catching  the  flying 
insects. 

One  afternoon  the  kongoos  rested  on  a  tree  and 
saw  a  great  many  bees  hovering  over  a  prairie,  feed 
ing  on  the  sweet  flowers. 

Their  enemies,  the  bee-eater  birds,  had  also  come 
to  make  war  upon  them,  as  they  did  every  year,  for 

18  273 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

these  birds  knew   the  month  of  the   year  when   the 
bees  made  their  appearance  in  the  prairie. 

Looking  at  the  beautiful  plumage  of  these  bee- 
eaters,  one  not  knowing  them  would  have  thought 
they  were  gentle  and  harmless,  but  they  had  to  live, 
and  to  do  so  they  had  to  destroy  life.  Those  who 
did  not  fear  them  thought  them  beautiful.  Those 
upon  whom  they  fed  thought  they  were  horrid  and 
fierce,  and  hated  them. 

After  a  while  the  old  kongoo  remarked  to  his 
companion,  "  The  bees  have  a  hard  time ;  the  bee- 
eaters  are  killing  and  eating  them  ;  look  at  them." 

Among  the  bee-eaters  that  had  come  in  large  flocks 
was  one  species  that  had  a  splendid  roseate  breast; 
as  they  flew,  they  appeared  like  spots  of  fire  flying 
through  the  sky  ;  the  speed  of  their  flight  told  of 
their  fierceness  as  they  swooped  down  upon  the  poor 
bees  and  seized  them  with  their  long  curved  beaks  in 
the  middle  of  their  bodies,  taking  their  lives  before 
they  swallowed  them,  so  that  they  could  not  sting. 

An  hour  or  two  before  sunset,  the  two  kongoos 
tarried  by  a  river  where  they  knew  that  fish  were 
abundant,  and  slept  on  one  of  the  trees.  Their  lives 
were  the  same  every  day  on  the  journey.  They 
stopped  here  and  there  on  the  shores  of  rivers  or 
lagoons  to  fish  when  they  were  hungry,  and  the  last 
thing  before  sunset  would  once  more  stop  to  fish  and 
then  go  to  sleep.  Every  day's  journey  brought  them 
nearer  the  Eliva  Monon. 

After  a  few  days  they  arrived  at  the  mouth  of  a 

274 


THE    KONGOO 

large  river,  and  slackened  their  speed.  Each  said  to 
the  other,  "  Look,  there  is  the  Rembo  Commi " 
(rembo  is  a  larger  river),  and  they  were  glad,  for  one 
of  its  affluents  was  the  Eliva  Monon.  They  went  fish 
ing,  but  had  a  scanty  meal,  for  the  fish  had  ascended 
the  stream.  It  was  almost  dark  when  they  reached 
the  mouth  of  the  Rembo  Commi.  So  they  slept  on  a 
big  tree. 

When  they  awoke  in  the  morning,  they  felt  very 
happy,  for  they  knew  that  their  journey  was  almost  at 
an  end.  They  combed  and  oiled  their  feathers,  then 
flew  over  the  Rembo  Commi  and  never  stopped 
until  they  reached  the  Eliva  Monon,  a  big  expanse  of 
water  which  was  as  smooth  as  glass.  They  saw  that 
the  river  was  already  full  of  mullets  and  other  fish 
that  had  come  to  spawn.  The  two  kongoos  met 
several  of  their  old  friends,  the  compagnondos  (another 
large  fishing  eagle),  who,  when  they  saw  them  coming, 
uttered  shrill  cries  of  welcome,  that  were  heard  far 
away.  The  compagnondos  are  of  a  gray  color,  the 
two  mates  looking  very  much  alike,  and  they  are 
larger  than  kongoos. 

A  few  kongoos  had  also  arrived  before  them,  so 
that  the  two  new-comers  were  not  the  first  to  reach 
the  spot,  as  they  had  expected.  All  these  fishing 
eagles  formed  a  colony  that  had  built  their  nests  on 
the  shores  of  the  Eliva  Monon,  and  they  lived  in  peace 
with  one  another.  Though  they  would  often  hover 
over  the  same  shoal  offish,  yet  there  was  no  dispute, 
each  picking  out  his  own  prey. 

275 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT   FOREST 

Immediately  after  their  arrival,  the  two  new-comers 
went  fishing,  each  by  himself,  as  is  the  custom  among 
all  the  eagles,  for  they  were  terribly  hungry.  Often 
they  came  near  together  as  they  hovered  over  a  big 
shoal  of  fish.  Both  had  a  splendid  meal,  which  they 
needed  much  after  their  long  journey. 

They  perched  upon  the  tree  on  which  they  had 
built  their  nest.  The  nest  was  round  and  made  of 
sticks,  and  set  between  forked  branches  with  great 
skill,  so  as  to  give  the  least  possible  exposure  to  the 
wind,  and  it  was  several  feet  in  diameter.  They  said, 
"  Our  nest  wants  much  repairing." 

They  kept  looking  fondly  at  their  dear  old  nest, 
which  they  had  built  when  they  were  first  mated,  and 
that  was  quite  a  number  of  years  before.  The  kon- 
goos,  like  many  other  eagles,  live  together  all  their 
lives.  These  two  loved  each  other  very  much. 

For  a  few  days  they  were  very  busy  with  the  work 
of  repairs,  gathering  new  sticks  to  take  the  place  of 
the  old  ones  and  weaving  them  into  the  structure. 
Then  they  had  also  to  fish  to  satisfy  their  hunger. 
So  they  had  hardly  any  time  to  rest,  and  were  very 
glad  when  evening  came. 

Though  the  Eliva  Monon  was  full  of  fish,  the  kon- 
goos  and  compagnondos  had  to  use  considerable  judg 
ment  and  thought  to  catch  their  prey.  As  they 
soared  above  the  fish,  they  had  to  calculate  the  length 
of  time  to  reach  it,  how  deep  it  was  in  the  water,  and 
if  too  deep,  to  watch  until  it  came  near  enough  to  the 
surface  before  they  swooped  down  upon  it.  They  had 

276 


THE    KONGOO 

to  make  allowance  for  the  speed  of  the  fish  and  for 
the  time  that  was  required  to  reach  it.  They  had  also 
to  contract  their  claws  instantly  on  seizing  their  prey. 
When  they  swooped  they  invariably  caught  the  fish 
in  a  line  with  their  own  beak  and  tail,  so  that  in  flying 
away  with  it  the  fish's  body  might  offer  no  resistance 
to  the  wind.  In  a  word,  their  eyes  had  to  act  very 
quickly. 

But,  despite  all  their  cunning  and  forethought,  they 
often  make  miscalculations  and  miss  their  fish.  Some 
times  it  is  deeper  in  the  water  than  they  imagine,  or 
the  fish  is  swimming  faster  than  they  think.  The  fish 
himself  often  swims  by  starts,  quick  at  first,  and  then 
slackening  his  speed.  The  fishing  eagles  have  to  cal 
culate  on  all  these  contingencies. 

Sometimes  they  do  not  get  a  good  hold  on  the  fish, 
and  as  they  fly  in  the  air  with  it  the  fish  is  successful 
in  his  struggles  to  free  himself  and  falls  into  the  water ; 
his  enemy  darts  after  him,  but  often  too  late,  for  he 
has  disappeared  in  deep  water.  Fishing  eagles,  too, 
have  to  work  hard  for  their  living. 

One  day  our  two  kongoos  had  had  their  fill  of  fish 
and  were  looking  on  from  their  tree  at  a  large  number 
of  pelicans  who  had  just  arrived  and  alighted  on  the 
water.  The  kongoo  said  to  his  mate :  "  Look  at  the 
pelicans.  How  strangely  they  behave !  What  are 
they  doing  ?  " 

The  pelicans,  after  they  had  alighted  on  the  water, 
swam  in  different  directions  to  look  for  fish.  Sud 
denly  some  of  them  discovered  a  large  shoal  of  fish 

277 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT   FOREST 

in  a  shallow  part  of  the  river.  By  ways  known  only 
to  the  pelican,  they  communicated  the  news  of  their 
discovery  to  the  others,  and  in  a  short  time  the  whole 
flock  knew  that  there  was  a  shoal  of  fish  in  sight  and 
swam  toward  the  spot,  all  feeling  glad  at  the  prospect 
of  a  good  meal. 

A  few  of  the  pelicans  that  were  farther  off  seeking 
fish,  saw  the  gathering  of  the  flock,  who  appeared  to 
be  so  excited  that  they  knew  something  was  up  and 
flew  toward  their  companions. 

The  flock  had  a  very  cunning  chief,  an  old  fellow 
who  had  led  them  successfully  many  times  on  their 
fishing  campaigns.  He  saw  by  the  rippling  of 
the  water  the  exact  place  of  the  shoal,  and  at  once 
made  his  plan  of  attack,  so  that  very  few  should 
escape.  All  the  pouches  of  the  pelicans  were  empty, 
and  they  were  terribly  hungry.  "  Let  us  'corral  the 
fish/'  he  said  to  the  flock.  Then  taking  the  lead, 
he  swam  around  the  shoal,  the  rest  following  equi 
distant  from  one  another  in  a  circle,  the  fish  being  in 
the  middle.  Sometimes  the  pelicans  had  to  swim  fast 
to  keep  their  formation  and  follow  their  chief,  who  was 
watching  the  fish.  A  few  pelicans  were  ordered  out 
side  to  fill  up  the  gaps.  When  the  signal  was  given, 
they  wheeled  toward  the  shoal  and  attacked  it ;  fish 
after  fish  was  caught  between  their  powerful  long  bills. 
The  slaughter  of  the  fish  was  very  great;  many  of 
these  fish  had  done  in  their  way  what  the  pelicans 
were  now  doing  to  them :  they  had  gobbled  up  many 
smaller  fish  a  little  time  before.  When  the  pelicans 

278 


THE   KONGOO 

could  not  eat  any  more,  they  filled  their  pouches  and 
swam  leisurely  over  the  Eliva  Monon. 

One  afternoon,  as  the  big  kongoo  was  hovering 
over  the  Eliva  Monon,  while  his  mate  was  on  the 
nest,  he  suddenly  espied  a  number  of  very  big  fish 
that  were  swimming  together.  His  appetite  increased 
at  once  at  the  sight.  He  thought,  as  he  looked  down 
over  them  :  "  What  a  big  fish  I  am  going  to  catch  ! 
What  a  glorious  meal  I  am  soon  to  enjoy !  If  they 
only  come  a  little  more  to  the  surface  of  the  water, 
my  meal  is  secure."  He  watched  them,  but  he 
feared  they  were  too  deep  in  the  water  for  him  to 
pounce  upon  one  of  them  at  once.  Gradually  the 
fish  came  nearer  the  surface.  One  was  larger  than  the 
others.  The  kongoo  selected  him  for  his  prey  and 
hovered  over  him.  When  he  thought  that  the  time 
had  arrived,  he  swooped  straight  down  with  great 
force,  and  went  deep  into  the  water  so  that  his  power 
ful  talons  could  grasp  the  fish  well. 

The  fish  was  very  heavy  and  strong.  When  he 
felt  the  claws  of  the  eagle  in  his  body,  he  plunged 
deeper  into  the  water,  dragging  the  big  kongoo  down 
with  him.  The  kongoo  raised  his  wings  so  that  they 
almost  met,  that  he  might  beat  the  air  more  strongly 
by  bringing  them  down.  It  would  have  been  all 
over  with  him  if  he  had  sunk  entirely  under  water. 

The  power  of  rising  from  the  water  is  only  given 
among  birds  to  ducks,  geese,  swans,  and  their  kindred 
that  have  webbed  feet.  The  broad  spreading  foot 
covers  so  much  water  that  the  bird  finds  a  surface  to 

279 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE  GREAT   FOREST 

spring  from,  while  to  the  feet  of  other  birds  the  water 
offers  no  resistance  so  that  they  cannot  rise. 

The  kongoo,  using  all  his  strength  with  his  wings, 
gave  several  flaps  and  succeeded  in  rising  above  the 
water  with  his  prey.  But  the  fish  was  very  heavy. 
He  could  not  let  the  fish  go,  for  his  talons  were  too 
deeply  imbedded,  and  he  could  not  take  his  claws  out 
on  account  of  their  curved  shape. 

Two  or  three  times  the  big  eagle  struggled  up,  and 
was  drawn  down  again.  It  was  a  fight  for  life.  Fi 
nally  the  kongoo  succeeded  in  landing  with  his  prey, 
feeling  much  exhausted.  Then,  with  his  powerful 
hook-like  beak,  he  tore  the  fish  and  disentangled  his 
claws ;  then  he  made  his  meal  by  holding  the  fish  fast 
to  the  ground  with  his  claws  and  picking  his  body. 

After  this  he  flew  to  the  perch  by  his  nest.  His 
mate  was  upon  it,  and  he  said  to  her :  "  Dear,  I  have 
had  an  awful  time  since  I  left  you.  I  hooked  a  fish 
that  was  deeper  in  the  water  and  stronger  than  I  be 
lieved,  and  he  almost  pulled  me  under.  I  thought  it 
was  all  up  with  me  and  that  I  was  to  be  drowned 
and  should  never  see  you  again.  But  thanks  to  my 
powerful  wings,  I  am  safe.'*  Then  he  settled  upon 
the  nest  to  take  the  place  of  his  mate,  while  she  flew 
away  to  get  her  meal  of  fish. 

In  due  course  of  time  three  little  kongoos  came  out 
of  their  shells,  to  the  delight  of  the  two  old  ones. 
Now  all  their  care  and  love  were  to  be  for  these  three 
little  ones.  As  they  grew  big  and  their  appetites  and 
the  amount  of  food  to  satisfy  them  had  increased  with 

280 


ill 


The  kongoo,  using  all  his  strength  with  his  wings, 
gave  several  flaps" 


THE   KONGOO 

their  size,  the  old  kongoos  had  to  work  hard  to  feed 
them.  All  the  fishing  eagles  on  the  Eliva  Monon 
had  to  work  hard  also,  for  every  nest  had  a  family, 
and  the  fish  had  a  hard  time. 

The  eagles,  after  catching  a  fish,  would  fly  toward 
their  nest,  then  hover  over  it,  saying,  "  Here  I  am, 
dear  little  ones.  I  have  food  for  you." 

The  young  kongoos,  hearing  their  parents,  would 
look  up  and  cry  or  shriek  louder  than  they  did 
before,  with  their  mouths  wide  open  to  show  how 
hungry  they  were,  and  were  not  pacified  until  food 
was  given  to  them.  The  noise  the  little  ones  made 
during  a  great  part  of  the  day  throughout  the  whole 
neighborhood  was  great  indeed. 

Our  three  young  ones  grew  very  fast,  feathers  were 
taking  the  place  of  their  gray  down,  and  in  time  the 
large  feathers  on  their  wings  had  grown  almost  enough 
for  them  to  try  to  fly.  While  the  two  kongoos  were 
perched  by  their  nest  one  day,  Mrs.  Kongoo  said  to 
her  mate,  "  I  am  going  to  fish."  Then  she  flew  away. 

Strange  to  say,  she  was  never  seen  any  more  after 
this.  Her  mate  was  very  much  distressed.  Toward 
sunset,  as  she  did  not  appear,  he  uttered  piercing  cries, 
calling  for  her.  He  flew  in  search  of  her  ;  but  at  last 
when  it  was  almost  dark,  he  came  back  to  their  tree, 
got  upon  the  nest,  took  her  place,  and  spread  his  wings 
over  their  little  ones  to  keep  them  warm.  That  night 
he  felt  very  unhappy,  thinking  ail  the  time  of  his  mate. 
At  daylight  he  uttered  shrill  cries  of  distress  which  in 
the  language  of  the  kongoos  meant :  "  Come  to  me, 

281 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

dear.  Where  are  you  ?  I  am  waiting  for  you."  But 
no  answer  came  to  him.  In  the  mean  time  the  young 
ones  were  clamoring  for  food.  So  the  poor  kongoo, 
with  a  sad  heart,  soared  over  the  Eliva  Monon  for 
fish,  and  after  a  while  came  back  with  food  for  them. 
He  had  to  work  hard  all  day  to  feed  them,  for  now  he 
was  all  alone.  In  his  spare  moments,  he  would  rest 
upon  a  tree  and  think  of  his  dear  missing  mate  and 
call  for  her,  or  he  would  fly  up  and  down  the  Eliva 
Monon  searching  for  her. 

The  little  ones  began  to  try  the  strength  of  their 
wings  and  see  how  far  they  could  fly.  But  the  old 
kongoo  had  to  feed  them,  until  at  last  they  were  able 
to  take  care  of  themselves  and  began  to  fish.  The 
dear  old  kongoo  mourned  greatly  after  his  mate.  He 
would  stand  still  for  hours  on  a  tree,  and  in  despairing 
tones  cry  for  her  to  come. 

At  length  the  fish  became  scarce  in  the  Eliva 
Monon  ;  the  shoals  were  leaving  fast  for  the  sea.  By 
this  time  the  young  kongoos  and  compagnondos 
could  fly,  and  the  fishing  eagles  left  gradually.  The 
last  to  leave  was  the  sad  old  kongoo.  He  stood  for 
days  near  his  nest,  hoping  that  his  mate  would  come 
back.  Finally  he  gave  up  the  hope  of  ever  seeing  her 
again,  and  flew  away,  never  to  come  back  to  the  Eliva 
Monon.  The  following  year  some  other  kongoos 
took  possession  of  his  abandoned  nest. 

Not  one  of  the  fishing  eagles  could  ever  tell  him 
what  had  become  of  his  mate.  Had  she  suddenly 
dropped  dead?  Had  she  been  carried  away  under 

282 


THE    KONGOO 

the  water  by  a  big  fish,  or  as  she  was  striving  to  rise 
from  the  water  with  a  big  fish  did  a  water-snake  coil 
round  her  ?  The  widowed  kongoo  the  following  year 
got  another  companion,  but  he  always  remembered  his 
first  mate  and  chose  another  river  during  the  spawning 
season. 


283 


CHAPTER   XLV 

THE    BASHIKOUAY    ANTS 

MILLIONS  upon  millions  of  bashikouay  ants 
inhabit  their  subterranean  dwellings ;  but  no 
one  to  this  day  has  been  able  to  see  how  they  live 
there,  and  what  their  home  is  like. 

One  day  there  was  great  excitement  among  them. 
They  all  shouted :  "  Let  us  go  above  the  ground  and 
make  a  raid.  The  forest  is  also  our  home ;  it  is  there 
that  we  get  our  living." 

They  cried  boastfully  :  "  We  are  very  small,  it  is 
true,  and  when  we  are  alone  we  are  powerless ;  but  as 
an  army  we  are  the  most  formidable  and  dreaded 
creatures  of  the  forest.  Who  can  withstand  our 
fierceness  when  we  are  on  the  war  path,  and  are  eager 
for  attack  !  The  big  njokoo  runs  as  fast  as  he  can  at 
our  approach,"  and  they  laughed  when  they  thought 
of  his  big  size  and  the  capers  he  cut  when  they 
swarmed  into  his  ears,  and  everywhere  over  his  huge 
body.  "  The  terrible  and  mighty  ngina  whose  roar 
ings  fill  the  forest,  runs  away  when  warned  by  the 
multitude  of  insects  and  animals  fleeing  for  life's 
sake  at  our  coming ;  but  he  is  often  caught  while 
surrounded  by  our  swarms,  and  his  shrieks  of  pain 
ring  through  the  forest  as  he  flies,  with  many  of  our 

284 


THE    BASHIKOUAY   ANTS 

number  covering  his  body  and  biting  him.  The  sly 
and  blood-thirsty  njego  has  no  time  to  look  for  prey, 
and  flies,  yelling,  '  The  bashikouays  are  coming  ! ' 
Then  all  the  bashikouays  laughed  at  the  same  time, 
for  they  imagined  the  stampede  created  by  their 
appearance. 

Then  they  cried  more  boastfully  still :  "  All  the 
night  prowlers,  —  the  kambis,  the  ncheris,  the  omem- 
bas,  —  and  all  the  living  creatures  of  the  great  forest 
in  which  we  live,  insects  and  all,  cry  in  great  dis 
tress,  c  Let  us  flee  for  our  lives,  for  the  bashikouays 
are  coming !  *  The  forest  is  filled  with  the  buzz 
of  the  fleeing  host,  small  and  large ;  all  are  panic- 
stricken  ;  the  heavy  tramping  of  the  njokoo  is  heard 
above  all.  They  do  not  all  escape.  Many  of  the 
animals  leave  their  helpless  young  behind,  to  be  eaten 
by  us,  and  multitudes  of  insects  are  devoured  by  our 
hordes.  The  human  beings  fear  and  hate  us.  We 
are  afraid  only  of  three  things,  —  fire,  water,  and  the 
sun.  The  only  creatures  that  are  not  afraid  of  us  are 
those  that  live  in  the  water  and  in  the  air." 

After  the  great  uproar  of  their  boasting  had  sub 
sided,  their  chiefs  said  to  them :  "  Be  still ;  wait  a 
while  till  our  young  get  larger  and  stronger ;  for  we 
cannot  leave  them  behind." 

As  with  other  ants,  the  great  chiefs,  acting  as  the 
generals  of  an  army,  are  the  largest  and  the  least 
numerous  of  all.  Their  heads  are  furnished  with 
ugly,  powerful,  long  nippers,  the  head  being  as  large 
as  the  rest  of  the  body. 

285 


THE  WORLD    OF   THE   GREAT   FOREST 

The  officers  are  smaller  than  the  chiefs,  and  much 
more  numerous,  and  armed  likewise  with  powerful 
nippers.  They  attend  to  the  discipline  of  the  great 
army ;  then  come  the  soldiers  forming  the  mass  of 
the  great  army.  The  number  of  these  is  beyond 
computation.  Their  heads  are  square  and  their 
nippers  are  not  as  powerful  as  those  of  the  others ; 
but  they  can  bite  terribly  also. 

One  day  the  chiefs  decided  that  the  time  had  arrived 
for  the  bashikouays  to  make  their  raid.  They  came 
out  of  the  earth  by  multitudes  of  tunnels,  close  to 
gether  in  amazing  numbers,  forming  themselves  into 
a  compact  marching  column,  led  by  the  chiefs  and 
officers.  For  many  hours  the  bashikouays  poured  out 
incessantly  from  their  abode.  They  numbered  count 
less  millions.  It  was  one  of  the  largest  armies  that 
had  ever  come  out  of  the  earth.  Their  discipline 
was  perfect.  There  were  ruling  brains  among  them, 
who  gave  orders  and  who  kept  their  ranks  in  perfect 
formation.  Officers,  very  alert  in  their  movements, 
walked  on  both  flanks,  seeing  that  no  one  left  the 
column. 

If  perchance  any  bashikouay  left  the  ranks  for 
one  reason  or  another,  the  officer  having  charge  of 
that  squad  at  once  went  after  the  straggler,  inquired 
what  was  the  matter,  or  ordered  him  to  go  back  to 
the  ranks.  If  sick,  he  was  left  alone,  to  rejoin  the 
host  later  on.  If  too  sick,  he  was  left  to  die. 

The  van  of  the  army  marched  on,  and  still  the  main 
body  was  pouring  out  of  its  subterranean  home.  By 

286 


THE    BASHIKOUAY   ANTS 

and  by  the  van  came  to  a  place  which  they  had  to 
cross  where  the  sun  was  shining.  Immediately  tunnels 
were  dug  for  the  whole  army  to  pass  through  and  be 
protected  from  the  sun.  Farther  on  they  came  to 
a  stream  where  two  dead  trunks  of  trees  overlapped 
each  other  above  the  water,  and  immediately  the  ad 
vance  guard  of  the  column  made  a  chain  or  tunnel  by 
holding  onto  each  other  firmly  with  their  legs,  as  bees 
do,  forming  a  suspension  bridge  connecting  with  the 
tree  underneath,  and  the  whole  body  crossed  to  the 
other  side  and  continued  their  march. 

News  came  that  the  last  of  the  host  had  come  out 
from  under  the  ground.  There  was  great  excitement 
among  all  the  bashikouays  at  this  news.  How  the 
news  was  flashed  along  the  lines,  only  the  bashikouays 
could  tell.  Suddenly  the  order  came  from  the  front 
to  the  rear  to  prepare  for  the  attack.  It  passed  along 
the  line  as  quickly  as  if  by  telegraph.  There  was  a 
tremendous  uproar  among  the  troops.  By  precon 
ceived  plan,  the  long  line  of  bashikouays,  miles  in 
length,  formed  itself  into  several  army  corps  which 
manoeuvred  in  such  a  manner  that  some  of  them 
made  a  great  circle,  as  if  to  corral  their  victims. 

They  broke  ranks,  advanced  in  large  masses  to 
gether  in  every  direction,  or  in  deployed  columns,  and 
attacked  every  living  thing  before  them  with  great 
fury  and  the  utmost  bravery,  fearless  of  danger  or 
death,  only  having  in  view  the  conquest  of  their  prey. 
They  rushed  upon  their  victims,  who  in  an  instant 
were  covered  with  them,  and  then  the  strong  pincers 

287 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

were  fastened  in  the  skin  or  body,  cutting  out  a  piece 
each  time. 

The  news  spread  among  all  the  Hying  creatures 
that  their  dreaded  enemy  the  bashikouays  were  ad 
vancing  and  attacking  everything.  A  great  panic 
seized  the  whole  population  of  the  forest ;  all  cried 
at  once,  "  Flee  !  Flee  for  your  lives  !  "  There  was 
great  confusion  among  the  denizens  of  the  forest; 
omembas,  kambis,  ncheris,  njokoos,  nginas,  njegos, 
ngoas,  and  all  other  creatures  fled  to  escape  their 
dreaded  enemy.  No  one  attacked  the  other,  for  in 
their  flight  they  were  too  frightened  and  too  much  in 
a  hurry  to  get  away  and  save  their  own  lives.  They 
had  all  lost  their  appetites. 

Beautiful  birds  of  all  kinds  followed  the  columns  of 
bashikouays,  picking  up  insects  as  they  fled  and  often 
bashikouays  themselves. 

In  one  place  the  bashikouays  had  succeeded  in  sur 
rounding  a  njokoo.  In  an  instant  myriads  of  them 
were  on  his  body.  They  covered  the  inside  of  his 
trunk  and  ears,  also  his  eyes.  The  poor  njokoo  fled 
for  his  life,  and  disappeared  in  the  forest,  tearing  every 
thing  before  him,  making  for  a  river. 

Some  of  the  men  of  the  woods  had  narrow  escapes. 
They  received  great  bites  and  gave  shrieks  of  pain. 
They  had  never  run  so  fast  in  their  lives,  and  did  not 
stop  until  they  thought  they  were  out  of  danger. 
Here  a  njego  was  to  be  seen  fleeing  with  her  tiny  little 
baby  in  her  mouth,  carrying  him  away  from  the  bashi 
kouays.  She  had  been  obliged  to  leave  two  little 

288 


THE    BASHIKOUAY   ANTS 

ones  in  her  lair.  When  the  bashikouays  reached  the 
lair,  they  precipitated  themselves  with  great  frenzy 
upon  the  little  njegos,  who  soon  were  black  with 
them.  In  a  short  time  only  their  bones  were  left, 
and  the  bashikouays  continued  on  their  errand  of 
destruction. 

All  the  abodes  of  the  night  prowlers  that  were  in 
the  way  of  this  great  army  were  visited,  and  the  young 


destroyed.  Some  of  the  old  ones  even  fell  victims  to 
the  bashikouays.  Onward  they  went.  During  the 
night  they  reached  a  village  where  there  were  no 
human  beings.  They  had  all  left  for  their  plantation. 
The  bashikouays  swarmed  into  every  house,  attacked 
and  overpowered  the  rats,  mice,  centipedes,  scorpions, 
spiders,  lizards,  and  the  many  cockroaches  that  were 
there,  and  when  they  went  away  not  one  of  these  was 
left.  All  had  been  devoured. 

Farther  on  they  entered  another  village.     Here  the 
human  beings  were  fast  asleep.     The  terrible  bites  of 
the    bashikouays    soon    awoke    them.      "The    bashi 
kouays  have  come  ! "  shouted  the  people.    The  women 
19  289 


THE   WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT   FOREST 

seized  their  helpless  little  babies,  and  the  fathers  their 
little  children,  otherwise  they  would  have  been  over 
powered  and  devoured  by  the  bashikouays. 

In  haste  the  inhabitants  lighted  fires  everywhere 
across  the  street  down  which  the  invading  army  came, 
and  brought  burning  brands,  hot  ashes,  etc.,  to  burn 
the  invaders,  and  poured  boiling  water  upon  them. 
One  man  who  was  bedridden  was  surrounded  by  hot 
ashes  and  burning  brands ;  otherwise,  he  would  have 
been  eaten  up,  and  in  less  than  two  hours  his  bones 
would  have  been  all  that  was  left  of  him. 

Before  daylight  this  attacking  column  was  thoroughly 
disorganized,  and  entered  the  forest,  for  they  knew  that 
the  sun  was  coming. 

The  chiefs  and  officers  had  the  greatest  trouble,  and 
it  required  great  genius  to  reform  the  scattered  host 
into  a  solid  column.  The  loss  of  life  during  the  raid 
of  the  bashikouays  had  been  very  great. 

After  the  raid,  the  tract  of  forest  where  the  bashi 
kouays  had  passed  was  deserted.  The  animals  who 
afterward  dared  to  go  back  to  their  lairs  or  burrows 
saw  only  the  bones  of  their  little  ones. 

When  the  bashikouays  disappeared,  no  one  in  the 
forest  could  tell  whether  they  had  reformed  their  army 
column,  where  they  had  gone,  or  if  they  had  entered 
once  more  into  the  bowels  of  the  earth. 


290 


CHAPTER   XLVI 

THE    DARKENING    OF    THE    DAY 

ONE  day  there  was  great  excitement  among  all 
the  animals  and  birds  of  the  great  forest. 

A  panic  had  seized  them  all,  for  the  bright  sunny 
day  seemed  to  be  gradually  turning  into  twilight,  the 
forerunner  of  the  night.  They  said,  "  Why  is  this 
sudden  ending  of  light  ?  "  They  all  wondered  why  ; 
for  it  was  not  time  for  the  night  to  come  ;  there  had 
been  no  sunset.  The  day  was  not  half  over. 
_  All  were  frightened  at  the  phenomenon ;  they  could 
not  understand  this  sudden  change.  The  air  was 
filled  with  the  shrill,  plaintive,  and  frightened  cries  of 
birds  ;  for  they  had  a  dread  of  some  unknown  danger 
coming ;  they  flew  hither  and  thither,  as  if  not  know 
ing  where  to  go,  hardly  daring  to  alight. 

The  day  animals  walked  to  and  fro  with  fear  in 
their  eyes ;  for  they  could  not  understand  why  the 
night  was  coming  so  soon.  They  had  had  no  time 
to  get  a  full  meal.  This  sudden  ending  of  the  day 
they  had  never  seen  in  their  lives.  Their  shrieks, 
howls,  yells,  and  roars  were  heard  everywhere  ;  the 
trumpetings  of  the  njokoos  were  the  most  piercing  of 
all. 

291 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE  GREAT   FOREST 

The  night  prowlers  woke,  and  wondered  why  the 
night  came  so  soon  ;  they  were  not  half  rested,  and 
those  among  them  who  had  been  lucky  enough  to  get 
a  meal,  had  not  yet  digested  it,  and  were  not  hungry. 

Darker  and  darker  it  became.  This  darkness  was 
caused  by  an  eclipse  of  the  sun,  the  moon  passing 
between  the  great  orb  and  this  part  of  the  earth,  the 
great  forest. 

At  last  the  birds  were  compelled  to  alight ;  for  it 
was  getting  too  dark,  and  they  could  hardly  see,  but 
their  twitterings  told  of  their  fright.  The  men  of  the 
woods,  the  monkeys,  and  other  day  creatures  made 
themselves  ready  for  the  night ;  but  none  fell  asleep, 
for  they  dreaded  some  great  catastrophe. 

As  the  eclipse  continued,  the  sombre  forest  became 
quite  dark,  birds  and  animals  became  silent ;  many  fell 
asleep. 

Before  long,  however,  to  their  utter  astonishment, 
the  twilight-like  dawn,  the  forerunner  of  the  day,  made 
its  appearance.  Brighter  and  brighter  it  became,  and 
the  sun  at  last  shone  as  if  it  were  midday.  The  forest 
became  at  once  full  of  life,  and  all  birds  and  animals 
wondered  at  the  short  night,  and  said :  "  What  has 
happened  ?  We  never  knew  such  a  thing  !  " 


292 


CHAPTER    XLVII 

THE    NTUNGOOLOOYA,    OR    KINGFISHER 

PERCHED  on  a  limb  of  a  tree  by  the  bank  of  a 
river  was  a  kingfisher  of  a  beautiful  deep  blue 
color.  His  head  was  ornamented  with  a  crest  of  long 
blue  feathers  with  white  rings.  This  crest  he  could 
erect  or  lower  at  will. 

"  Here  I  am  on  a  good  vantage  ground/'  said  he, 
"  where  I  can  look  for  prey.  Small  fish  is  the  food  I 
live  upon.  Sometimes  I  have  to  wait  long  before  I 
-get  a  meal.  Oh,  how  hungry  I  am !  I  hope  some 
little  fishes  will  come  my  way.  I  can  do  nothing  with 
the  big  ones,  as  I  am  a  tiny  bird." 

The  little  kingfisher  waited  for  his  breakfast,  look 
ing  carefully  at  the  water. 

Once  in  a  while  he  saw  a  small  fish,  and  watched, 
hoping  that  he  would  come  to  the  surface ;  but  several 
times  he  was  disappointed.  His  crest  stood  erect 
every  time  he  became  excited  and  watched  a  fish  in 
sight,  and  made  ready  to  pounce  upon  him.  He  said 
to  himself:  "  I  have  a  long  beak  to  enable  me  to  get 
my  living.  I  can  dip  into  the  water  and  get  at  the 
fish  with  it.  My  legs  are  very  short,  and  of  no  use 
except  to  perch  with."  Two  or  three  times  he  left 
his  perch,  and  hovered  over  fish,  his  wings  fluttering 

293 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT   FOREST 

quickly.  He  appeared  almost  upside  down  ;  but  the 
fish  was  too  deep  in  the  water  for  him  to  reach,  and 
after  hovering  about  a  while  over  them,  he  returned 
to  his  watching-place,  feeling  disappointed  and  more 
hungry  than  before,  for  the  sight  of  the  fish  whetted 
his  appetite. 

While  he  was  waiting,  a  shoal  of  little  fish  in  the 
middle  of  the  stream  were  swimming  away  from  the 
big  fish,  who  had  come  among  them  and  were  gobbling 
them  as  fast  as  they  could.  The  little  fish  said :  "  Let 
us  swim  as  fast  as  we  can  to  the  bank  of  the  river  for 
protection,  for  these  horrid  big  fishes  will  not  be  able 
to  pursue  us  in  the  shallow  water." 

In  their  flight  they  were  pursued  by  the  big  fish, 
and  a  great  number  gobbled  up.  In  their  panic  they 
leaped  above  the  water  in  order  to  escape ;  but  fish 
cannot  remain  in  the  air,  so  as  they  fell  into  the  water 
again,  many  disappeared  in  the  big  mouths  of  their 
pursuers.  Soon  the  more  fortunate  ones  were  out  of 
the  big  fishes'  reach  ! 

While  the  kingfisher  was  waiting  for  prey,  and  the 
little  fishes  were  swimming  toward  the  land,  a  long 
slender  snake  whose  life  was  chiefly  spent  in  the 
thickets  and  bushes,  preying  upon  birds  and  eating 
their  eggs,  saw  the  kingfisher,  and  said  :  cc  I  must  crawl 
toward  this  bird  and  have  him  for  my  morning  meal.  A 
great  gift  has  been  given  to  me  —  I  am  green  and  of  the 
color  of  the  leaves,  so  that  I  can  get  my  living ;  because 
thus  I  am  able  to  approach  birds  without  being  seen 
by  them.  But  I  must  be  .wary,  for  all  the  winged 

294 


NTUNGOOLOOYA,   OR   KINGFISHER 


creatures    are    afraid 
of  us  green  snakes." 

The  snake  wound 
along  from  branch  to 
branch,  never  losing 
sight  of  the  little 
blue  kingfisher,  his 
cunning  eyes  glitter 
ing  with  joy,  for  he 
thought  he  was  sure 
of  his  prey,  and  he 
said,  "Soon  I  am 
to  enjoy  a  nice 
breakfast." 

The  kingfisher 
was  unaware  that 
one  of  his  worst 
enemies  was  com 
ing  toward  him,  and 
he  kept  up  his 
watch.  Fortunately 
for  him,  the  shoal 
of  little  fish  came 
in  sight  just  in  the 
nick  of  time,  and 
they  were  the  cause 
of  his  life  being 
saved. 

The  snake  was  preparing  to  coil  round  the  king 
fisher  when  suddenly  the  bird  flew  after  one  of  the 

29$ 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

little  fish,  succeeded  in  capturing  it,  and  then  flew 
away  with  his  booty  to  another  tree. 

Great  indeed  was  the  wrath  of  the  snake  when  he  saw 
that  his  prey  had  escaped  him,  and  he  said  angrily  :  "  I 
was  sure  of  a  breakfast,  but  it  has  flown  away  and 
nothing  is  certain  till  one  gets  it ;  but  I  will  wait  here, 
for  surely  the  kingfisher  will  come  back." 

He  waited  and  waited,  but  the  pretty  little  king 
fisher  did  not  return.  Little  did  the  latter  know  that 
he  owed  his  life  to  the  shoal  of  little  fish  upon  which 
he  had  preyed. 


296 


CHAPTER   XLVIII 

THE    OBONGOS,    OR    DWARFS 

STRANGE-LOOKING  small  human  beings, 
almost  as  singular  as  the  men  of  the  woods, 
were  one  day  talking  together  near  some  diminutive 
houses,  looking  somewhat  like  beehives  covered  with 
very  large  leaves.  These  houses  had  openings  or  doors 
which  were  so  low  and  small  that  these  creatures  had 
to  lie  flat  on  their  stomachs  and  crawl  in  like  snakes 
when  they  wished  to  enter.  They  had  just  returned 
with  rough-looking  baskets  filled  with  berries,  nuts, 
and  fruits  which  they  had  gathered  that  day. 

These  little  people  were  the  dwarfs,  or  pigmies, 
living  in  the  great  African  forest,  and  were  called 
obongos.  They  varied  in  height  from  about  three 
feet  eight  or  nine  inches  to  four  feet  two  to  four 
inches.  They  were  all  taller  than  their  houses. 

Their  complexion  varied  from  that  of  light  yellow  to 
a  muddy  clay  color,  like  that  of  the  nkengos ;  a 
few  were  darker.  They  were  shaped  like  big  people, 
had  feet  and  hands  like  theirs;  but  their  feet  were 
more  flexible,  yet  not  so  much  so  that  they  could  be 
used  as  hands,  like  those  of  the  men  of  the  woods. 
They  were  all  lightly  built ;  there  was  not  a  corpulent 
one  among  them.  They  had  not  the  straight  hair  of 

297 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

the  men  of  the  woods.  Their  heads  were  covered 
with  little  tufts  of  reddish  woolly  hair,  each  tuft  being 
separate.  Some  had  also  the  same  tufts  of  hair  upon 
their  bodies. 

After  a  while  other  obongos  came  with  more  food, 
until  there  were  about  fifty  of  them  together.  They 
told  what  they  had  seen  during  the  day  and  the  places 
where  food  was  plentiful. 

They  had  an  old  chief  with  cunning  but  kindly 
features.  They  spoke  a  language  more  distinct  than 
that  of  the  men  of  the  woods,  but  their  words  were 
difficult  to  make  out.  The  dwarfs  seated  themselves 
on  the  ground,  cross-legged,  round  a  big  fire  that  they 
had  lighted  by  rubbing  two  pieces  of  very  dry  wood 
against  each  other. 

After  a  while,  a  wise  dwarf  said  to  the  others,  who 
listened  to  him  eagerly :  cc  Strange  it  is  that  we  dwarfs 
partake  of  two  natures,  —  one  that  of  the  big  human 
beings  inhabiting  the  forest,  and  the  other  that  of  the 
men  of  the  woods.  We  partake  of  the  nature  of  the 
men  of  the  woods  in  that  we  never  plant  or  sow 
anything ;  we  live  on  the  berries,  fruits,  nuts,  and 
canes  of  the  forest ;  we  have  to  roam  through  the 
forest  like  them  in  search  of  food ;  our  shelters  are  of 
leaves  like  theirs  ;  we  have  to  shift  our  abode  as  they 
do,  for  after  a  few  days  we  have  eaten  all  the  food 
around  us. 

cc  We  partake  of  the  nature  of  the  human  beings  in 
this  :  we  can  make  fire  and  enjoy  it ;  we  cook  our 
food  ;  we  make  traps  to  snare  game ;  we  use  weapons, 

298 


THE    OBONGOS,   OR   DWARFS 

such  as  iron  spears,  bows  and  arrows,  and  axes  ;  we 
know  how  to  poison  arrows ;  we  can  smoke  ;  we  can 
make  intoxicating  drinks,  and  can  get  drunk ;  we  can 
learn  the  language  of  the  big  people  and  speak  it,  and 
the  big  people  can  also  learn  our  language." 

After  a  short  silence,  another  wise  dwarf  said : 
"  What  has  been  said  is  true.  But  we  do  not  know 
how  to  work  iron;  the  spears  we  get  from  the  big 
people,  and  everything  else  that  is  made  of  iron ;  the 
intoxicating  drinks  we  have  learned  from  them  also ; 
what  we  smoke  is  planted  by  them ;  our  pottery  is  of 
their  make. 

"  Do  not  the  young  men  of  the  woods  that  are 
captured  by  the  big  human  beings  learn  to  drink 
intoxicating  drinks  as  we  do,  to  eat  cooked  food,  and 
even  to  smoke,  when  they  keep  them  long  enough 
with  them  ?  Do  they  not  enjoy  the  heat  of  the  fire 
as  well  as  we  do?  Do  they  not  steal  plantains  or 
other  food,  and  learn  that  it  is  wrong  to  do  so,  after 
they  have  been  flogged  for  it  ?  Do  they  not  prefer  a 
soft  place  to  sleep  on  instead  of  a  hard  one  ?  I  tell 
you  the  men  of  the  woods  can  learn  many  of  the 
ways  of  the  human  beings." 

"  That  is  so ! "  shouted  all  the  dwarfs  at  the  same 
time.  "The  men  of  the  woods  can  learn  the  ways 
of  the  human  beings.  You  are  right !  you  are 
right!" 

Then  the  dwarfs  put  more  wood  on  the  fire.  How 
strange  the  dwarf  women  appeared  !  How  tiny  were 
their  little  babies  !  The  dwarfs  began  to  eat  the  food 

299 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT   FOREST 

they  had  brought,  and  after  their  meal  lingered  near 
the  big  fire ;  then  other  fires  were  lighted  in  different 
places  among  the  green  leafy  dwellings.  Gradually, 
one  after  another,  they  entered  their  houses  by  crawl 
ing  on  their  stomachs,  taking  lighted  brands  to  light 
fires  inside. 

That  night  there  was  a  big  storm ;  the  claps  of 
thunder  were  terrific;  the  lightning  pierced  through 
the  forest.  It  rained  in  torrents.  So  the  dwarfs,  now 
and  then,  went  out  of  their  leafy  houses  to  see  that 
the  fires  were  not  extinguished ;  for  they  did  not  want 
any  ferocious  njego  to  come  among  them  and  carry 
away  one  of  their  number. 

They  were  up  at  break  of  day,  and  hurried  to  the 
forest  in  search  of  food,  for  fear  they  should  come  too 
late  and  that  the  men  of  the  woods  and  ngoas  might 
be  on  the  spot  before  them.  The  women  followed 
with  their  tiny  babies.  They  had  to  travel  quite  a 
way  before  they  came  to  the  food  ground,  for  they 
had  been  in  their  settlement  for  over  eight  days. 
When  they  reached  the  spot,  they  saw  that  no  crea 
tures  had  been  before  them.  So  they  were  glad  and 
ate  to  their  hearts'  content. 

Some  climbed  trees  to  seek  nuts,  berries,  or  fruits ; 
others  were  on  the  ground  looking  for  them.  They 
all  filled  their  baskets.  They  returned  home  quite  a 
while  before  sunset,  and  talked,  ate,  and  warmed 
themselves  by  the  fires,  after  which  they  retired. 
They  bemoaned  the  lack  of  game.  The  traps  and 
snares  they  had  laid  were  empty.  They  said  :  "  These 

300 


THE    OBONGOS,   OR    DWARFS 

horrid  bashikouay  ants  must  have  been  in  this  region 
before  we  came.  As  for  the  monkeys,  we  do  not 
know  what  has  become  of  them." 

The  following  day  they  started,  as  usual,  very  early 
for  the  feeding  ground;  but  it  took  them  a  much 
longer  time  to  go,  for  every  day  it  was  farther  off. 
When  they  got  there,  they  found  that  some  men  of 
the  woods,  even  some  boars  and  monkeys,  had  been 
before  them,  and  they  were  angry,  shouting,  "The 
horrid  creatures  have  eaten  our  food !  How  often 
they  play  such  tricks  upon  us ! " 

Like  all  the  rest,  the  dwarfs  thought  that  the  berries, 
nuts,  and  fruits  grew  for  them  alone,  and  belonged  to 
them,  and  that  the  other  creatures  of  the  forest  had  no 
business  to  eat  them.  Fortunately,  the  poor  dwarfs 
had  saved  food,  and  they  had  plenty  to  eat  when  they 
returned  to  their  settlement ;  but  they  were  not  in  the 
best  of  humor. 

The  next  morning  they  divided  into  several  parties, 
and  went  to  another  district  to  get  food.  It  was  a 
nut  country.  To  their  consternation  very  little  food 
was  to  be  got ;  for  the  ngoas  had  been  there  and  eaten 
all  the  koola  nuts  that  had  fallen  on  the  ground,  and 
some  of  the  men  of  the  woods  and  monkeys  had 
made  great  havoc  among  the  fruits  and  nuts.  The 
dwarfs  had  no  words  bad  enough  for  them,  and  wished 
they  were  all  dead. 

That  afternoon  some  of  their  fellows  arrived  with 
a  dead  nkengo  which  they  carried  on  a  long  pole. 
There  was  very  great  excitement  among  all  the  dwarfs 

301 


THE  WORLD  OF  THE   GREAT  FOREST 

when  they  saw  the  dead  nkengo,  for  they  thought  that 
they  were  distantly  related  to  him.  They  surrounded 
the  body  as  he  lay  on  the  ground.  The  nkengo  had 
died  of  old  age ;  he  had  only  five  teeth  left,  and  the 
hair  on  his  body  had  become  gray  and  was  very  thin. 
How  old  he  was  nobody  could  guess. 

That  evening,  the  dwarfs  said :  "  Let  us  move  away 
to-morrow.  We  have  to  travel  too  far  now  to  get 
food.  It  will  take  us  the  whole  day  to  go  from  here 
and  come  back.  How  horrid  the  ngoas  are ;  but  still 
worse  are  the  men  of  the  woods !  What  a  pity  that 
we  cannot  trap  them  all !  " 

Early  the  next  morning  the  dwarfs  packed  their 
small  belongings,  the  men  having  their  bows  and 
arrows,  the  women  carrying  their  little  bits  of  children 
slung  on  their  backs. 

As  they  were  ready  to  start,  the  old  chief  said : 
"The  men  of  the  woods,  the  nkengos,  and  the 
mbouves  have  an  advantage  over  us.  They  have  no 
belongings  to  carry  with  them  when  they  go  to  find 
new  quarters."  And,  before  leaving,  the  dwarfs  said  : 
"We  cannot  all  go  together,  for  we  should  not  be 
able  to  pick  up  food  enough  for  all  of  us.  So  we 
must  journey  in  small  squads,  and  before  night  we  will 
meet  by  the  big  koola-tree  we  all  know.  Its  nuts  are 
ripe,  and  we  shall  find  plenty  of  them  on  the  ground, 
and  have  a  good  supper,  unless  the  ngoas  have  been 
there  before  us." 

With  this  understanding  they  started.  They  looked, 
as  their  bodies  were  dimly  seen  through  the  branches 

302 


THE    OBONGOS,   OR   DWARFS 

of  the  trees,  as  if  they  were  men  of  the  woods.     Soon 
the  squads  were  out  of  sight  of  one  another. 

Though  the  dwarfs  can  find  their  way  through  the 
jungle  better  than  the  big  people,  they  have  not  the 
natural  gift  in  this  respect  bestowed  on  the  animals  of 
the  forest.  When  they  are  changing  their  abode  and 
are  on  the  march,  they  have  to  make  marks  now  and 
then,  and  see  that  they  follow  the  marks  they  made 
with  their  hatchets  the  year  before  upon  the  trees,  and 
also  make  new  ones  as  they  go  along.  They  feed  on 
what  they  can  find  on  the  way,  picking  here  and  there 
a  berry,  fruit,  or  nut,  and  looking  for  monkeys,  which 
they  hope  to  kill  with  their  arrows  made  of  palm-tree 
branches. 

At  the  appointed  time,  the  different  squads  of  dwarfs 
arrived,  one  after  another,  under  the  koola-tree,  and  a 
great  abundance  of  koola  nuts  covered  the  ground, — 
a  sight  which  rejoiced  them  greatly. 

"  Fortunate  are  we,"  said  Monbon,  one  of  the 
dwarfs,  with  a  shrill  laugh,  "  that  these  horrid  ngoas 
did  not  make  their  appearance  before  us ;  otherwise 
we  should  have  had  to  go  to  sleep  with  shrunken 
stomachs,  for  very  little  food  have  we  found  on  our 
way." 

They  lighted  two  big  fires,  and  then  gathered  the 
koola  nuts.  These  they  broke  with  stones,  and  ate 
a  good  many  of  them  and  saved  the  others.  When 
they  had  eaten,  some  of  the  dwarfs  went  to  a  stream 
near  by  to  drink.  There  they  saw  the  footprints  of  a 
ngina,  and  they  were  full  of  fear. 

3°3 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE    GREAT   FOREST 

One  dwarf  also  discovered  fresh  footprints  of  a  njego; 
and  when  he  told  his  comrades  of  it,  they  said :  "  We 
must  keep  our  fires  burning  bright  all  night,  so  that 
the  njegos  will  be  afraid  to  come  near.  The  only  way 
for  us  to  avoid  the  nginas  and  njegos,  and  to  make 
them  flee,  is  to  make  a  great  noise."  Accordingly 
they  made  all  the  racket  they  could,  and  then  slept 
surrounded  by  big  fires. 

The  following  day  they  travelled  from  early  morn 
ing,  and  in  the  afternoon  came  to  a  region  full  of 
berries,  nuts,  and  fruits,  and  noticed  that  the  country 
was  full  of  game. 

That  day  one  of  the  squads  found  the  skull  of  a  full- 
grown  male  ngina.  It  was  fearful  to  behold,  it  looked 
so  fierce  with  all  its  teeth  grinning  in  its  jaws.  An 
other  squad  found  the  skull  of  a  little  ngina,  and  they 
took  it  with  them  also. 

When  they  laid  these  before  the  whole  company  of 
dwarfs,  they  all  shouted  :  "  Now,  nginas,  you  will  eat  no 
more  of  our  fruits,  berries,  and  nuts."  Then  they 
reflected  that  perhaps  these  nginas  had  come  to  their 
death  by  stepping  upon  the  point  of  poisoned  arrows 
that  had  been  planted  in  the  ground  by  some  other 
colony  of  dwarfs  ;  for  it  is  their  custom  sometimes  when 
they  fear  enemies  at  night  to  do  so  near  their  settle 
ment  ;  but  it  is  very  seldom  they  do  this,  and  then 
they  know  exactly  where  these  are  laid,  since  they 
might  step  upon  them  themselves. 

Examining  the  skull  of  the  big  ngina,  they  said, 
"  The  nginas  have  the  same  number  of  teeth  that  we 

3°4 


THE    OBONGOS,   OR    DWARFS 

have,  but  how  strong  theirs  are ; "  and  they  wondered 
at  the  big  ridge  at  the  top  of  the  skull, — which  space, 
when  the  ngina  is  alive,  is  covered  with  muscles 
attached  to  the  lower  jaw,  that  give  him  such  tre 
mendous  biting  power. 

Then  they  looked  at  the  little  head  and  counted  its 
teeth  and  said :  "  These  young  nginas  have  the  same 
number  of  teeth  that  our  children  have  before  they 
get  their  second  set." 

They  agreed  to  go  a  little  farther  the  next  day,  and, 
if  the  country  proved  good,  to  stop  there  and  build 
their  houses. 

The  dwarfs  went  to  sleep  very  happy,  for  there  was 
a  good  prospect  of  food  before  them. 

Early  the  following  morning  they  were  exploring 
the  forest.  At  noon,  when  they  met,  they  all  agreed 
that  the  country  was  good,  and  there  was  much  food. 
They  looked  for  a  place  near  a  spring  to  build  their 
new  houses. 

They  went  to  the  forest  to  collect  material.  They 
took  machetes  and  queer-looking  axes  with  them  which 
they  had  got  from  the  big  people.  They  came  back 
after  a  while  with  many  long  slender  saplings,  the 
kind  that  could  be  bent  without  breaking,  large  leaves, 
short  sticks  for  beds,  —  in  a  word,  all  the  building 
material  they  needed.  After  depositing  these  on  the 
ground,  they  returned  for  more.  When  they  had 
collected  enough,  they  began  to  make  their  houses. 
They  bent  the  slender  branches  of  trees  in  the  shape 
of  a  bow  and  put  each  end  in  the  ground. 
20  305 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE   GREAT   FOREST 

The  houses  were  not  quite  four  feet  in  height. 
They  made  two  little  beds  in  each  house.  Four  or 
five  sticks  put  together  made  each  bed,  and  a  log 
made  the  pillow.  When  this  was  done,  they  roofed 
their  beehive-like  structure  with  large  leaves,  overlap 
ping  each  other,  to  prevent  the  rain  from  coming  in. 
In  each  house  slept  two  dwarfs.  Though  the  houses 
appeared  all  alike,  the  owners  could  tell  the  difference 
between  them.  After  their  settlement  was  built,  the 
dwarfs  said  :  — 

"  How  much  better  are  our  shelters  than  those  of 
the  nkengos  and  of  the  mbouves  !  but  we  are  obliged 
to  move  away  as  often  as  they  do,  for  we  live  much  the 
same  kind  of  life."  They  then  collected  firewood  for 
the  night.  This  was  easy  enough,  for  in  the  big  forest 
dead  and  fallen  limbs  of  trees  were  lying  everywhere. 

After  their  supper  they  seated  themselves  round  a 
log  fire.  They  all  felt  happy,  for  they  had  come  to  a 
part  of  the  forest  where  food  was  plentiful ;  and  even  if 
the  nginas,  the  men  of  the  woods,  or  the  ngoas  came, 
they  would  not  eat  it  all.  When  it  was  bedtime,  they 
went  off  one  by  one  to  their  houses.  They  lay  flat  on 
their  bellies  and  crawled  in,  for  the  doors  of  their 
dwellings  were  not  more  than  one  foot  in  height  and 
not  quite  as  wide.  They  started  early  the  following 
morning.  The  men  went  to  lay  all  kinds  of  traps 
and  snares  in  the  forest  to  trap  game.  The  women 
went  after  food,  but  they  found  it  round  their  settle 
ments.  All  came  back  early. 

The  next  afternoon  was  a  great  feast  day ;  not  only 

306 


THE   OBONGOS,   OR    DWARFS 

fruits,  berries,  and  nuts  were  abundant,  but  the  dwarfs 
had  been  very  successful  in  trapping  game.  One  came 
back  with  a  big  ombama,  over  twenty  feet  long  ;  some 
had  monkeys,  which  they  had  killed  with  arrows. 
Two  wild  boars  and  two  or  three  animals  had  been 
trapped  and  caught.  So  there  was  a  great  feast  that 
evening. 

The  following  day  they  trapped  so  much  game  that 
the  dwarfs  said,  "  The  bashikouay  ants  must  have 
made  a  raid  in  the  forest,  and  the  animals  have  fled  in 
our  direction."  Big  fires  were  lighted ;  and  when  the 
firewood  had  been  reduced  to  charcoal,  they  roasted 
the  monkeys  and  big  pieces  of  boar  upon  it.  They 
ate  to  their  hearts*  content.  After  eating,  they  lay  on 
their  backs,  just  as  the  men  of  the  woods  do,  and 
smoked  wild  hemp  which  they  got  from  the  big 
human  beings,  and  felt  happy.  In  the  evening  they 
retired  under  their  shelter  after  they  had  collected  fire 
wood  for  the  night. 

Then,  seated  around  their  fire,  some  of  the  dwarfs 
said  :  "  Our  camp  is  not  far  from  a  village  of  big 
people.  It  is  a  long  time  since  we  have  eaten  plan 
tains.  Let  us  go  and  exchange  game  with  them  for 
bunches  of  plantains,  for  the  plantains  taste  so  much 
better  than  all  the  nuts  and  fruits  we  find  in  the 
forest." 

So  they  went  to  a  village  of  a  tribe  which  lived  in 
that  part  of  the  forest,  and  took  several  monkeys  and 
pieces  of  wild  boar.  They  were  well  received  and 
welcomed  by  the  big  people,  among  whom  they  had 

30? 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT    FOREST 

many  friends,  and  remained  in  their  village,  enjoying 
the  cooked  plantains  that  were  served  to  them.  When 
they  returned,  they  took  back  with  them  as  many 
bunches  of  plantains  as  they  could  carry. 

Thus  the  dwarfs  spend  their  lives  year  after  year. 


308 


CHAPTER   XLIX 

ADVENTURES    OF    A    NKENGO    AND    A    NSHIEGO 

BEFORE  closing  this  volume  I  will  give  the  story 
of  two  remarkable  creatures  which  belonged  to 
the  "  World  of  the  Great  Forest,"  a  nshiego  and  a 
nkengo.  These  two  were  made  captive,  and  after 
many  adventures  left  their  gloomy  home,  went  to  the 
country  of  the  white  man,  where  one  of  them  died  and 
the  other  learned  many  things  which  excited  great 
interest,  and  sent  many  observers  home  with  food 
for  thought. 

One  day  a  big  nshiego  with  her  little  one  was  wan 
dering  in  the  great  forest  in  search  of  food,  but  without 
being  aware  of  it  they  came  near  a  region  inhabited  by 
human  beings  that  had  guns.  The  mother  was  killed 
by  some  hunters,  and  her  baby  was  captured  by  them 
and  brought  to  their  village.  She  was  tied  to  a  long 
pole  with  a  ring  round  it  to  allow  her  to  go  up  and 
down. 

Everything  in  the  village  looked  very  strange  to 
the  little  nshiego,  it  was  so  unlike  the  dark  gloomy 
forest  where  she  had  lived.  At  first  she  was  afraid  of 
the  human  beings,  but  in  less  than  three  days  she  be 
came  very  friendly  because  they  brought  her  nuts,  ber- 

3°9 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE    GREAT    FOREST 

ries,  and  fruits  to  eat.  She  was  especially  fond  of  her 
master.  Her  mistress  did  not  like  to  handle  her,  for 
she  thought  she  was  too  much  like  a  human  being. 

The  poor  little  captive  nshiego  always  had  a  sad 
expression,  and  when  looking  at  her  one  could  see 
that  she  was  thinking,  at  which  times  she  looked 
more  human  than  ever ;  but  no  one  could  ever  guess 
of  what  she  was  thinking.  She  had  partly  learned 
the  language  of  the  nshiego,  which  had  been  taught  to 
her  by  Papa  and  Mamma  Nshiego.  Her  father  had 
been  shot  a  few  weeks  before  her  mother  had  perished, 
so  that  she  was  now  an  orphan. 

She  had  a  very  quick  temper,  although  she  was 
very  affectionate  and  loved  to  be  petted.  When  they 
brought  her  food  and  she  was  pleased,  she  would  say, 
"  Whoe  !  whoe  !  "  When  displeased,  she  would  utter 
the  most  piercing  shrieks  and  strike  the  ground  with 
her  feet  and  hands.  If  she  could  not  have  her  own 
way,  she  would  at  once  become  angry  and  shriek.  In 
a  short  time  she  learned  to  eat  cooked  food,  and  was 
especially  fond  of  boiled  meat.  She  learned  also  to 
drink  the  intoxicating  beverages  of  the  people  and 
liked  these  very  much. 

It  happened  one  day  that  some  people  of  another 
tribe  nearer  the  sea  came  to  the  village  where  the 
nshiego  was,  to  buy  slaves.  When  they  saw  her 
they  wanted  to  buy  her  also,  for  there  was  a  great  de 
mand  for  men  of  the  woods  by  the  traders  on  the 
Atlantic  coast.  They  bought  the  poor  nshiego  for 
a  small  bunch  of  red  beads.  ,  - 

310 


A   NKENGO    AND   A   NSHIEGO 

When  the  time  came  for  the  departure  of  the 
strangers,  the  nshiego  and  the  slaves  they  had  bought 
went  with  them.  She  felt  very  badly,  for  she  had  be 
come  much  attached  to  the  people  who  had  been  so 
kind  to  her. 

On  the  journey  to  her  new  master's  home,  she  felt 
her  change  of  condition  still  more.  The  slaves  were 
chained  round  the  neck,  and  the  poor  nshiego's  head 
was  put  in  the  fork  of  a  very  long  stick  with  a  cross- 
stick  in  front.  After  three  days  she  came  to  the  vil 
lage  where  her  new  master  lived,  and  she  was  glad  when 
they  released  her  from  her  horrid  shackles  and  tied 
her  to  a  pole,  for  her  poor  neck  had  become  very 
sore  from  chafing.  From  the  pole  she  could  see  a 
large  river  near  the  village  where  she  was. 

She  had  not  been  in  her  new  place  long  when  some 
men  living  still  nearer  the  sea,  who  came  to  buy 
elephants'  tusks,  saw  her,  and  they  bought  her  for  a 
large  hollow  copper  ring,  a  small  looking-glass,  and  a 
file.  When  the  time  came  for  these  people  to  depart, 
they  tied  the  nshiego  on  the  forward  part  of  their 
canoe,  for  they  were  to  travel  by  the  river.  The  poor 
nshiego  wondered  at  all  she  saw  on  the  journey,  and  in 
the  course  of  two  days  they  arrived  at  a  village  by  the 
sea. 

One  day  they  took  her  to  see  the  big  ocean.  At 
first  she  was  very  much  alarmed  when  she  saw  the 
heavy  breakers,  foaming  white,  rolling  toward  the 
shore.  But  she  soon  got  accustomed  to  them.  She 
looked  at  the  ocean  and  could  see  no  land  on  the  other 

311 


THE   WORLD   OF  THE  GREAT  FOREST 

side  and  wondered  why,  for  she  thought  it  was  a  big 
river  like  those  she  had  been  accustomed  to  see  in  the 
forest  while  wandering  with  her  mother  and  father. 
Then  she  uttered  a  peculiar  plaintive  sound.  Was 
she  thinking  of  them  ? 

The  dry  season  came,  and  it  was  cold,  and  she 
loved  to  sit  by  the  fireside  with  the  people.  She 
was  now  entirely  free  and  never  thought  of  running 
away.  When  night  came  she  would  fix  her  little  bed 
of  leaves  by  shaking  them,  and  put  over  herself  rags 
that  had  been  given  her  to  keep  warm. 

She  was  friendly  with  everybody,  for  every  one 
brought  her  berries,  nuts,  and  fruits,  and  also  ripe 
plantains  and  bananas,  of  which  she  was  very  fond, 
and  she  continued  to  eat  cooked  food  also. 

It  happened  that  while  the  nshiego  was  travelling  to 
the  sea,  a  nkengo,  somewhat  larger  and  stronger  than 
she,  was  captured,  after  the  killing  of  his  mother  and 
father.  He  was  also  sold,  and  in  the  course  of  time 
came  to  the  seashore,  but  for  some  reason  he  was 
vicious  and  could  not  be  tamed,  and  never  became 
friendly  with  the  people.  So  he  had  a  much  harder 
time  in  his  captivity,  for  he  had  bitten  a  couple  of 
people.  He  would  have  been  killed,  but  the  natives 
knew  that  one  day  or  another  they  could  sell  him  for 
a  good  price  to  some  white  trader  who  would  come  to 
the  coast  with  his  ship. 

It  came  to  pass  in  the  course  of  time  that  both  the 
nshiego  and  the  nkengo  were  sold  to  two  sea  captains 
and  sailed  for  Portugal  in  two  different  ships.  On  their 

312 


A   NKENGO   AND   A   NSHIEGO 

voyage  they  wondered  very  much  at  the  ship,  at  the 
blue  ocean,  and  that  no  more  trees  were  to  be  seen. 
To  them  it  was  a  very  strange  world.  On  board  both 
got  accustomed  to 
eat  the  food  of  the 
white  man  when 
the  plantains  and 
bananas  were  all 
eaten  up.  In  the 
course  of  time  they 
reached  their  des 
tination  in  very 
good  health  ;  they 
were  now  in  the 
country  of  the 
white  man. 

After    several 
years  of  trials  and 
tribulations,    both 
the    nshiego    and     the     nkengo 
crossed   the    broad  Atlantic  and 
one  fine  day  landed  in  New  York. 
They    were    owned    by    "the 
biggest   circus    show    on    earth." 
They  had  become  big  and  strong 
since  they   had    left    the   west    coast   of  Africa,    and 
people  were  more  or  less  afraid  of  them. 

The  day  of  their  arrival  their  cages  were  changed 
and  they  found  themselves  again  behind  strong  iron 
bars  in  two  boxes  close  together,  and  saw  wonderful 

313 


THE   WORLD    OF   THE    GREAT    FOREST 

animals,  such  as  lions,  tigers,  rhinoceroses,  and  many 
others  they  had  never  seen  before.  They  were  very 
much  frightened  when  they  heard  their  roars  and  yells. 
Their  hair  stood  erect  on  their  bodies,  and  they 
uttered  great  yells  also,  and  if  they  had  been  in  the 
forest  how  fast  they  would  have  run  away  ! 

They  saw  some  njokoos,  but  were  not  afraid  of  them, 
for  it  was  like  meeting  old  acquaintances  of  the  great 
forest. 

In  the  course  of  time  they  became  reconciled  to  their 
new  lot,  and  did  not  mind  any  more  the  noises  of  the 
menagerie.  Their  places  of  confinement  were  close 
together  and  separated  inside  by  iron  bars.  This  ar 
rangement  was  made  in  order  to  enable  them  to  become 
friends  if  they  chose.  They  travelled  through  the  big 
cities  of  the  United  States  and  saw  many  things  which 
they  had  never  seen  before.  They  were  very  much 
astonished  when  they  journeyed  on  railroads,  and  at 
first  were  frightened,  but  became  accustomed  to  this 
and  to  many  other  ways  of  civilization. 

They  had  been  put  under  the  charge  of  a  special 
keeper,  who  had  nothing  to  do  but  to  take  care  of 
them,  for  they  were  considered  the  rarest  and  most 
valuable  creatures  of  the  big  show,  and  experience  had 
taught  their  owners  that  the  American  climate  was 
not  good  for  the  men  of  the  woods,  that  they  did  not 
live  long  here,  and  generally  died  of  consumption  or 
pneumonia.  So  the  greatest  care  was  given  them. 

During  their  travels  great  crowds  of  people  came 
to  see  them,  and  no  wonder,  for  no  such  large  nshiego 


A   NKENGO   AND   A   NSHIEGO 

and  nkengo  had  ever  been  seen  before.  They  looked 
so  much  like  people  that  some  thought  that  they 
were  a  sort  of  human  being,  the  "  missing  link " 
between  man  and  beast. 

They  were  so  large  now  that  no  keeper  ever  dared  to 
go  inside  of  their  cage,  for  it  had  long  before  been 
discovered  that  their  tempers  were  very  uneven,  that 
they  got  angry  for  nothing,  and  were  whimsical  and 
treacherous.  They  were  so  powerful  that  no  man 
could  wrestle  with  them,  as  he  would  surely  have 
been  torn  to  pieces. 

The  nshiego  was  called  Johanna  and  the  nkengo 
Ntchiko  by  mistake.  The  two  became  stronger  and 
stronger  every  day  as  they  grew  bigger.  A  new  cage 
with  thicker  iron  bars  had  to  be  made,  for  sometimes 
they  seized  the  bars  with  such  power  that  there  was 
danger  that  they  would  break.  Ntchiko  never  showed 
the  slightest  sign  of  tameness,  except  that  he  would 
take  food,  such  as  apples,  bananas,  nuts,  etc.,  from  the 
hand  of  his  keeper,  who  had  to  be  very  careful  when 
he  handed  these  to  him.  In  front  of  their  cage  was  a 
railing,  so  that  no  spectator  should  get  within  the 
reach  of  their  long  arms. 

Johanna's  face  as  she  grew  older  became  gradually 
black,  but  with  patches  of  yellow.  She  was  more 
amenable  to  the  keeper  than  Ntchiko,  but  neverthe 
less  he  never  dared  to  go  inside  of  her  cage,  for  he 
knew  what  his  fate  would  be  in  case  she  objected  to 
his  presence,  and  he  did  not  want  to  be  killed. 

Strange  to  say,  the  two  apes  were  neyer  friendly, 

3*5 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE   GREAT   FOREST 

though  their  cages  inside  were  only  separated  by  iron 
bars  through  which  they  could  shake  hands  and 
scratch  each  other  if  they  wished.  On  this  account 
those  who  had  charge  of  the  show  never  dared  to  ex- 


periment  by  putting  Johanna  and  Ntchiko  together, 
for  fear  that  they  would  fight,  and  Ntchiko,  who  was 
the  stronger,  would  kill  Johanna. 

After  the  travelling  season  was  over,  Ntchiko  and 
Johanna  wintered    in    New  York   at  the  Arsenal  in 

316 


A   NKENGO   AND  A   NSHIEGO 

Central  Park,  and  had  very  comfortable  and  warm 
quarters. 

One  day.  Friend  Paul,  who  was  living  in  New 
York,  went  to  see  them,  having  heard  of  their  fame 
and  of  the  excitement  they  created. 

As  he  came  before  their  cages,  he  imitated  the 
language  of  the  nkengo,  which  he  had  so  far  heard  in 
the  great  forest  of  Africa.  To  his  utter  astonishment, 
as  soon  as  Ntchiko  heard  him,  he  became  furious, 
uttered  terrific  yells  of  anger,  jumped  from  one  side 
of  his  large  cage  to  the  other,  went  to  the  farthest  cor 
ner,  picked  up  some  sawdust  from  the  floor  and  threw 
it  at  him,  then  came  toward  him  and  behind  his  iron 
bars  showed  every  disposition  of  wanting  to  fight  him. 
Paul  must  have  told  him  in  the  language  of  the 
nkengos  something  he  did  not  like,  to  make  him  so 
angry.  Paul  had  no  gun  with  him,  and  was  glad  that 
the  iron  bars  were  between  him  and  Ntchiko. 

Johanna,  who  belonged  to  another  variety,  did  not 
mind  what  Paul  said,  for  she  did  not  understand  him. 
That  same  winter,  their  keeper,  who  slept  in  an  ad 
joining  room,  heard  a  noise  in  the  room  occupied  by 
Ntchiko  and  Johanna,  and  thinking  that  they  were 
disturbed  by  something,  got  up  to  find  out  what  was 
the  matter.  He  was  dressed  in  a  long  white  night 
shirt,  and  as  he  came  unconsciously  toward  the  bars 
of  the  cage  of  Johanna,  he  was  seized  by  the  arm. 
She  had  passed  one  of  her  arms  through  the  bars; 
she  was  frightened.  The  poor  keeper  could  not  get 
away  from  her  clutches.  She  was  so  scared  that  she 

317 


THE  WORLD   OF   THE  GREAT   FOREST 

would  not  understand  or  recognize  his  voice.  It  was 
a  struggle  for  life.  His  arm  was  terribly  lacerated 
and  he  had  to  go  to  the  hospital. 

Time  passed  away,  and  Ntchiko  during  his  travels 
caught  cold  and  died  from  it.  To  his  death  he  re 
mained  vicious  and  untamable. 

A  year  or  more  passed  away,  and  in  the  spring  the 
great  show  was  once  more  installed  in  Madison  Square 
Garden,  Johanna  with  it,  but  with  no  Ntchiko  near 
her. 

It  happened  that  the  same  Paul  was  invited  by  the 
proprietor  of  the  show  to  a  special  morning  audience, 
given  to  see  how  Miss  Johanna  was,  and  how  much 
she  had  learned  since  he  had  seen  her,  and  was  told 
that  he  could  bring  some  of  his  friends  with  him. 

One  fine  morning,  Paul,  with  two  of  his  dear  little 
chums,  Alfred  and  Elizabeth,  together  with  their 
mamma  and  Fraulein,  went  to  Madison  Square  Gar 
den  to  make  a  visit  to  Miss  Johanna  by  appointment. 
They  descended  the  stairs  leading  to  the  basement 
and  found  themselves  in  the  midst  of  many  caged 
animals,  and  came  after  a  while  in  the  presence  of 
Johanna. 

Great  indeed  was  the  change  Paul  saw  in  Johanna. 
She  was  a  docile  creature,  and  loved  dearly  her  new 
keeper.  She  had  grown  a  great  deal.  Her  face  had 
become  almost  entirely  black,  with  here  and  there  a 
small  yellowish  patch  left.  Her  complexion  was  much 
like  that  of  a  chimney-sweeper.  The  skin  of  her 
body  had  become  black  and  her  nails  as  well 

318 


A   NKENGO   AND    A   NSHIEGO 

Her  new  keeper  understood  her  better  than  the 
former  one,  and  knew  how  to  teach  her  the  ways  men 
have ;  in  a  word,  he  was  a  very  intelligent  and  patient 
trainer.  Perhaps  Johanna,  who  no  longer  had  the 
vicious  Ntchiko  for  a  constant  neighbor,  had  become 
more  gentle  on  that  account.  Whatever  the  cause,  she 
had  become  a  new  and  wonderful  creature.  All 
she  had  been  taught,  she  had  learned  by  seeing  her 
keeper  do  it  before  her,  outside  of  her  cage.  She 
imitated  him,  as  children  do  by  looking  at  their 
parents. 

Soon  after  our  arrival  Johanna's  morning  toilet 
began.  A  wash-basin  filled  with  water  was  passed 
under  the  bars,  then  a  towel  and  soap.  She  washed 
her  face,  dried  it  afterward  with  a  towel,  and  washed 
her  hands  and  dried  them  also.  Then  a  tooth-brush 
was  given  to  her,  and  she  brushed  her  teeth. 

Afterwards  a  powder-box  was  handed  to  her.  She 
powdered  her  face  with  the  puff,  and  rubbed  her  skin 
with  a  towel  all  over  her  face.  She  then  took  a  look 
ing-glass  to  see  how  she  looked. 

All  these  preliminaries  of  her  breakfast  seemed 
mechanical.  That  is,  she  was  not  civilized  enough  to 
know  what  cleanliness  was,  to  know  that  her  face  was 
dirty  and  needed  to  be  washed,  and  that  a  sign  of 
beauty  was  to  have  good  and  clean  teeth.  But  there 
are  many  people  in  this  world  who  do  not  know 
as  much  as  this,  and  are  not  familiar  with  tooth 
brushes.  Johanna  appeared  to  feel  better  and  more 
lively  after  her  toilet  was  completed. 


THE  WORLD    OF    THE    GREAT  FOREST 

Breakfast  was  then  served  to  her  upon  a  board  as  a 
table,  passed  to  her  under  the  bars.  Upon  the  table 
were  put  a  plate,  a  glass,  half  a  bottle  of  wine,  a  nap 
kin,  tooth-picks,  a  knife  and  fork.  She  looked  com 
placently  at  the  preparations  for  her  breakfast,  and 
did  not  show  any  signs  of  impatience.  She  seemed  to 
know  that  it  was  coming  when  ready.  Then  chicken 
sandwiches  were  served. 

She  cut  her  sandwiches  with  her  knife,  and  ate  with 
a  fork,  as  a  civilized  person  is  accustomed  to  do. 
Now  and  then  she  wiped  her  mouth  with  her  napkin. 
While  eating,  she  took  the  cork  from  the  bottle  of 
port  wine,  rilled  her  glass  properly  and  generously, 
not  quite  to  the  brim,  and  drank  it  in  two  sips,  put  the 
glass  on  the  table,  wiped  her  mouth,  and  recorked 
the  bottle. 

The  keeper  said  to  me :  "  We  only  allow  her  a 
glass  of  port  wine  at  each  meal.  She  is  very  fond  of 
this  kind  of  wine,  and  when  she  thinks  I  do  not  see 
her,  she  will  help  herself  to  another  glass  if  I  turn  my 
back  to  her.  I  will  talk  to  you,  and  you  can  watch 
her." 

It  happened  just  as  the  keeper  said ;  as  soon  as  he 
turned  his  back,  Johanna  uncorked  the  bottle,  filled 
her  glass  quickly  but  in  a  proper  way,  and  drank  the 
wine  at  one  draught,  corked  the  bottle,  and  when  her 
keeper  turned  around  she  looked  at  him  as  if  she  had 
only  taken  one  glass,  and  as  if  nothing  out  of  the  way 
had  happened.  When  her  meal  was  finished,  she  used 
a  tooth-pick. 

320 


A   NKENGO   AND   A    NSHIEGO 

A  lighted  cigarette  was  then  given  to  her.  She 
smoked  it  like  a  man,  enjoying  it  wonderfully  well, 
inhaled  the  smoke,  and  let  it  come  out  of  her  mouth 
in  puffs,  and  once  or  twice  let  it  pass  through  her 
nose.  There  was  no  difference  in  manner  between  her 
and  a  man  smoking. 

After  this  she  lay  on  her  back  until  she  was  called 
for  a  sherry  flip.  It  was  served  to  her  with  straws, 
which  she  used  also  like  a  person  accustomed  to  take 
such  kinds  of  drinks.  When  her  sherry  flip  was 
drunk,  she  lay  on  her  back  again,  and  then  rested  for 
a  very  short  time.  The  keeper  then  asked  her  if  she 
wanted  to  put  her  shoes  and  stockings  on.  She  put 
her  legs  through  the  bars  and  let  him  put  them  on  for 
her.  After  this  he  asked  her  if  she  wanted  to  go  out. 
A  lady's  hat  was  given  to  her;  she  put  it  on  her 
head,  then  took  the  looking-glass  to  look  at  herself, 
and  stood  up  erect.  Then  she  seated  herself.  She 
evidently  was  not  accustomed  to  thick  leather  laced 
shoes,  and  these  were  not  kept  long  on  her  feet.  Her 
keeper  asked  her  to  kiss  him.  She  did  so  through 
the  bars,  kissing  him  with  a  pouting  mouth  on  one  of 
his  cheeks. 

She  understood  everything  he  said  to  her.  He 
asked  her  if  she  wanted  to  take  her  shoes  and  stock 
ings  off.  She  put  her  legs  outside  the  bars  to  have 
them  taken  off.  Then  the  ceremony  was  ended. 

Something  drew  her  attention  at  some  distance  from 
the  cage.  She  stood  up  erect  and  looked  in  that 
direction,  as  a  human  being  would  have  done. 

21  321 


THE  WORLD   OF  THE   GREAT    FOREST 

On  a  sudden  she  took  a  dislike  to  one  of  our  party, 
glared,  took  a  handful  of  sawdust  and  threw  it  right  at 
the  person,  uttering  sounds  of  anger. 

From  the  intelligence  Johanna  displayed,  if  her 
temper  could  have  been  relied  upon,  I  do  not  see  why 
she  could  not  have  served  a  small  party  at  dinner. 

Johanna  is  now  in  England.  How  much  more  she 
has  learned  I  cannot  tell ;  but  if  she  has  still  the  same 
keeper,  she  has  undoubtedly  learned  to  do  some  other 
things. 


3?  2 


GLOSSARY   OF   NATIVE   ANIMAL-NAMES 


Apilibish     .     . 

Butterfly. 

Ngando      .     . 

Crocodile. 

Bashikouay 

Ant  (species). 

Ngina     .     .     . 

Gorilla. 

Bongo    . 

Antelope    (spe 

Ngoa      .     .     . 

Wild  Boar. 

cies). 

Ngooboo     .     . 

Hippopotamus. 

Compagnondo 

Fishing  -  Eagle 

Ngomba 

Porcupine. 

(species). 

Ngozo    .     .     . 

Parrot. 

Guanionien 

Giant  Eagle. 

Niare     . 

Buffalo. 

Hako      .     .     . 

Ant       (generic 

Njego     .     . 

Leopard. 

name). 

Njokoo  .     .     . 

Elephant. 

Iboboti  .     .     . 

Spider. 

Nkago    .     .     . 

Red-  headed 

Iboco     .     •     . 

Fly  (species). 

Monkey. 

Ibolai     .     .     . 

Fly  (species). 

Nkema  .     .     . 

Monkey        (ge 

Ipi     .     . 

Scaly  Ant-eater. 

neric  name). 

Izomba  . 

Turtle. 

Nkengo  .     .     . 

Ape  (variety). 

Kambi    .     .     . 

Antelope    (spe 

Nshiego      .     . 

Chimpanzee 

cies). 

(variety). 

Kongoo  .     .     . 

Fishing  -  Eagle 

Nshiego-mbouve" 

Bald  -  headed 

(species). 

Ape. 

Kooloo-kamba 

Ape  (species). 

Nshiey  .     .     . 

Fish. 

Manga   .     .     . 

Manatee. 

Ntoto     .     .     . 

Ichneumon. 

Mboyo  .     .     . 

Jackal. 

Ntungoolooya  . 

Kingfisher. 

Miengai      .     . 

White  -  mous- 

Nyoi.     .     .     . 

Wasp. 

tached  Mon- 

Oganagana 

Bluish       Black 

key. 

Monkey. 

Mogara  . 

Ant  (species). 

Ogata     . 

Burrowing 

Mondi    . 

Jet-black,  Long 

Crocodile. 

haired    Mon 

Ombama     .     . 

Python. 

key. 

Omemba     .     . 

Serpent,  Snake. 

Nchegai 

Mandrill. 

Oseli      .     .     • 

Lizard. 

Nchellelay  .     . 

White  Ant,   or 

Osengi   .     .     .'. 

Monkey      (spe 

Termite. 

cies). 

Ncheri    .     ^    . 

Gazelle. 

Oshingi  . 

Civet. 

Nchouna     . 

Fly  (species). 

Ozoni      .     .  \v 

Ant  (species). 

Ndova    .     .     . 

White  -  nosed 

Vengela 

Grasshopper. 

Monkey. 

Viviki 

Mosquito. 

323 


popular  Jflufrnttlgs  Eg  ffaul  Bu  (EEflatUu 


The  LAND 
LONG  NIGHT 

WITH  24  FULL-PAGE  ILLUSTRATIONS 
BY   W.    J.    BURNS.       Square   I2mo,   $2.00 


The  Nation. 


The  record  of  a  winter  journey  from  Southern  Sweden  up  through 
Lappmark,  Finland,  and  Finmark  to  Nordkyn,  the  extreme  end  of 
the  European  mainland.  To  say  that  it  will  interest  its  youthful 
readers  from  beginning  to  end  is  well-nigh  superfluous. 

New  York  Tribune. 

Happy  is  the  winter  evening  of  that  young  person  who,  forgetting 
time  and  space  and  the  household  gods  about  him,  goes  forth  into 
strange  countries  with  Paul  Du  Chaillu.  For  that  most  kindly  of 
travellers  has  in  narrative  a  beguiling  simplicity  and  realism  which 
enables  him  to  hold  his  readers  closely  to  the  end. 

New  York  Times  Saturday  Review. 

It  is  a  capital  book  for  boys  or  girls  or  anybody,  and  Mr.  Burns 
has  contributed  a  great  many  excellently  drawn  and  very  telling  illus 
trations. 

The  Outlook. 

Here  are  information,  stories,  and  incidents  of  adventure  in  Arctic 
regions  strung  together  by  a  personal  narrative  of  travel — all  readable, 
unconventional,  entertaining. 

Philadelphia  Public  Ledger. 

His  narrative  is  engagingly  frank,  full  of  information,  and  with  no 
lack  of  adventure  and  incident.  It  will  prove  a  treasure  to  readers 
young  and  old. 


CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS,  Publishers 
J53-J57    FIFTH     AVENUE    NEW    YORK 


IVAR  THE  VIKING 


A  ROMANTIC  HISTORY,  BASED 
UPON  AUTHENTIC  FACTS  OF  THE 
THIRD  AND  FOURTH  CENTURIES 


I2mo,  $1.50 

Richard  Henry  Stoddard. 

There  is  that  in  Mr.  Paul  Du  Chaillu's  "  Ivar  the  Viking  "  which 
not  only  satisfies  the  lover  of  romantic  adventure,  but  carries  the 
scholar  back  into  the  remotest  period  of  Scandinavian  history.  Beyond 
all  living  writers  this  traveller  in  and  explorer  of  many  countries  has 
collected  the  documents  and  discovered  the  secrets  of  the  Norselands. 

New  York  Times. 

The  reader  who  has  begun  with  a  blank  mind  closes  the  volume 
with  a  tolerably  clear  expression  of  a  very  energetic,  powerful,  and 
wealthy  young  Viking,  capable  of  strong  affection,  foremost  in  games 
and  fights  requiring  physical  force,  and  with  a  vast  number  of  habits 
and  customs.  It  is  a  history  that  interests  through  its  simplicity. 

The  Nation. 

"  Ivar  the  Viking  "  is  to  be  thoroughly  recommended.  The  story 
is  characteristically  spirited,  and  the  romantic  part  leaves  nothing  to  be 
desired. 


CHARLES    SCRIBNER'S    SONS 

P  UB  L  IS  HE  R  S 

153—157    Fifth   Avenue,   New  York 


ffaul  aau  Cftatlltt'g  @t*at 

THE  VIKING  AGE 

THE  EARLY  HISTORY,  MANNERS,  <&* 
CUSTOMS  OF  THE  ANCESTORS  OF 
THE  ENGLISH-SPEAKING  NATIONS 

WITH   1400  ILLUSTRATIONS  AND  MAP 
2  vols.,  8vo,  $7.50 


CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS,  Publishers 


New  York  Tribune. 

"  These  luxuriously  printed  and  profusely  illustrated  volumes  em 
body  the  fullest  account  of  our  Norse  ancestors  extant.  Mr.  Du 
Chaillu  has  gone  very  fully  and  very  carefully  over  the  whole  of  his 
ground.  This  extensive  and  important  work  must  be  of  high  interest 
to  all  English-speaking  people/' 

Newark  Advertiser. 

"  Their  weapons,  ornaments,  ships,  domestic  manners  and  customs, 
art  and  industries,  are  all  reconstructed  with  a  minuteness  that  is  re 
markable,  if  we  consider  (as  we  must)  that  all  this  comes  to  us  after 
centuries  of  neglect." 

London  Athenaeum. 

"  What  is  really  valuable  in  these  volumes  is  the  exhaustive  digest 
which  they  contain  of  the  extant  information  respecting  the  manners 
and  character  of  the  ancient  people  of  Scandinavia.  The  work  deals 
with  the  entire  field  of  Scandinavian  archaeology.  In  the  main,  we 
believe  the  picture  he  has  drawn  of  the  manner  of  life  of  the  Vikings 
and  their  countrymen  to  be  as  accurate  as  it  is  undoubtedly  full  of 
interest." 

Edinburgh  Review. 

"The  subject  of  M.  Du  Chaillu's  work  is  vast  in  extent  and  full  of 
perplexing  difficulties.  We  have  shown  that  its  author  has  collected 
a  store  of  valuable  information,  a  great  part  of  which  has  hitherto  been 
inaccessible  to  English  readers.  His  enthusiasm  will  have  a  very  use 
ful  effect  if  it  leads  the  people  of  this  country  to  study  and  admire  the 
ancient  civilization  and  the  splendid  literature  of  our  Scandinavian 
kinsmen." 


Springfield  Republican. 

"  Mr.  Du  Chaillu  is  every  whit  as  agreeable  and  entertaining  as 
a  student  of  history  as  he  has  long  proved  to  be  in  the  character  of  a 
traveller." 

Chicago  Inter-Ocean. 

"  Mr.  Du  Chaillu  has  certainly  given  to  the  literary  world  a  work 
full  of  interest." 

The  Nation. 

"  While  in  Germany  and  in  Scandinavia  itself  books  have  been 
written  upon  the  life  of  the  ancient  inhabitants  of  the  North,  no  such 
comprehensive,  popular  work  as  this,  with  citations  from  the  old 
literature  and  illustrations  of  all  sorts  of  objects  preserved  from  the 
ancient  days,  has  yet  appeared.  It  is,  accordingly,  an  unused  op 
portunity  that  the  author  of  the  work,  with  characteristic  energy,  has 
recognized  and  seized.  The  two  volumes  are  filled  to  overflowing 
with  curious  and  interesting  facts  concerning  the  people  of  the  Scandina 
vian  North,  whose  manners,  social  customs,  and  national  life  the  more 
than  thirteen  hundred  illustrations  serve  to  bring  up  almost  visibly 
before  us.  The  book  as  a  whole  is  a  record  of  persistent  and  ingenious 
research,  and  of  extraordinary  literary  zeal." 

Philadelphia  Record. 

"  M.  Du  Chaillu' s  book  is  full  of  valuable  information  respecting 
the  manners  and  character  of  the  ancient  Norse  people.  It  is,  in  fact, 
a  perfect  museum  of  Northern  antiquities,  covering  the  entire  field  of 
Scandinavian  archaeology.  The  extracts  from  the  Sagas  which  are 
furnished  must  whet  the  appetite  of  students  of  Norse  literature." 

Boston  Transcript. 

"  Mr.  Du  Chaillu' s  monumental  work,  '  The  Viking  Age,'  upon 
which  the  careful  labor  of  over  eight  years  has  been  expended,  is  one 
for  which  scholars  will  be  profoundly  grateful.  It  brings  together 
from  innumerable  sources  a  vast  amount  of  information,  relative  to  the 
period  covered,  never  before  put  in  systematic  form.  The  chapters  on 
the  mythology  and  cosmogony  of  the  Norsemen,  on  the  superstitions, 
slavery,  graves,  finds,  weapons,  occupations,  feasts,  warfare,  etc.,  are 
intensely  interesting.  The  text  is  accompanied  by  nearly  fourteen 
hundred  illustrations." 


CHARLES  SCRIBNER'S  SONS,  Publishers 
153-157  Fifth  Avenue,  New  York 


